A Bushel and a Peck

Taking a walk down memory lane today. Music.

I am reminded of watching my mother do a few

dance steps in our kitchen when a particular song

came on the radio.  She taught me some of

the Charleston when Dixieland jazz played.

During our teen years, my sisters and I went

through song and dance phases.  We played

songs over and over and over.  As teens do.

My father would sing along while my mother

played the piano. They met at a college dance.

The rest is history. Music played a large role in my

life.  Piano lessons.  Later, church organist.

My parents made us laugh when they sang funny

lyrics and danced. A Bushel and a Peck or Flat Foot Floogie.

Old fashioned and out of step with the times.  I

Have always appreciated good music and rhythms.

It was the meaning behind the lyrics I did not

always know.  When I learned the backstory of

many songs, they no longer held the same meaning

to me.  When I showed my parents the “Twist,”

my father said I could cause some damage to

my back.  More like my knees.  Same dance

floor in our kitchen!  As I researched songs

today, I realized it was more about the music.

The lyrics are pretty funny too:  “I love you,

a bushel and a peck….”  Bushel and peck were dry measures

and techniques for rhyming words.  The nonsense

lines “A doodle, oodle, ooh, doo” matched the music.

When my father visited, he taught his grandchildren

how to dance and sing the Flat Foot Floogie as we

filmed their attempts, all the while full of giggles.

Besides hugs and kisses, our two children wanted

to know how much we loved them.  A bushel and a

peck.  My response was often sung as I danced

just as I had learned.  A bushel and a

peck of love.  On and on for generations!