For the Love of Lambs

I love lambs.

Where the affection began, I have no idea. There is just a soft spot in my heart for these baby sheep. Real or in stuffed animal form, lambs make me smile.

Once, when I worked in the Alzheimer's Unit of a nursing home, there was a gentle giant of a patient named George. He was pretty much non-verbal until it came to sing-a-longs with my guitar. Then he would start to sing, at top volume, in a deep, beautiful bass voice, The Whiffenpoof Song. Now the Yale Whiffenpoofs are the oldest collegiate a capella group in America and they are known for the Whiffenpoof song. Some of the words are:

"We are poor little lambs,
Who have lost our way
Baa baa baa
We are little black sheep
Who have gone astray
Baa baa baa

Gentlemen, songsters off on a spree
Doomed from here to eternity
God have mercy on such as we.
Baa baa baa

Every time I think of George, singing with all his soul about about the little lambs, my eyes fill with tears. The song must have meant a great deal to him and brought memories of his days at Yale. When the sing-a-long was over, he would slip back into silence and disappear into his room.

I also like to think of the concept of God being the shepherd and we, His people, are the sheep. After all, sheep are completely dependent on their shepherd for everything. He provides for them, nurtures and guides them, and protects them from harm, just as God does for His children. That is such a comforting thought.

The picture at the top of this column is of my own little Lambie Pie, found in a thrift shop at Christmas time one year. But he's so adorable, he gets to hang out on a table in my bedroom year-round.