Prey in the Dark
I just saw In America for the first time this past weekend. (The writing and acting were excellent.) There's a scene when the absolutely adorable daughter asks her father to say a prayer for her and her sister.
The not-much-older sister says it:
"No monsters, no ghosts
No devils, no witches
No people coming through the kitchen
Breaking the dishes
No devils coming out of the mirror
No dolls coming alive
[this space reserved for personal, specific prayer]
And all well with the world. Amen."
I paused the movie, went and wrote it down, for there was a cute rhyme in it. Since I will be an uncle soon, I thought about sending it to my brother and favorite sister-in-law. As I wrote the words down, I saw the fictional things that draw fear in children, "monsters, ghosts, devils, witches," and then the dose of reality about burglars. It made me think it wasn't such a cute poem anymore, and reminded me of the prayers I said as a child.
I thought of this classic one my family used to recite:
"Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray thee Lord, my soul to keep
If I should die before I wake
I pray thee Lord, my soul to take."
Awfully cute rhyme, huh? Back-to-back couplets. It's nice to know I was facing my own mortality at the age of five without even knowing it.
Or how about this one my father taught us to say, though we had no idea what it meant:
"San Jorge bendito,
Amarra tus animalitos
Con tu cordoncito bendito
Para que no nos vayan a picar"
The prayer sounds cute with the rhymes and all the sweet little "-itos." Here's the translation: "Blessed Saint George, tie up the little animals with your blessed cord so they will not bite us." The little animals it refers to are snakes, spiders, scorpions, etc.
Sure these prayers are for the sake of protection, yet these are morbid, scary thoughts, acknowledging children's fears--from monsters to death to spiders. In that acknowledgement, if aware of what is being said, the thoughts pop into the children's heads right before bedtime.
Do children really believe in this protection? Do they really get any rest at all? In the minds of children, couldn't the saying of the prayers simply manifest these fears before them, in closets, under beds? Haven't their parents seen Evil Dead 2 or Candyman? Have they not learned?
Is this something I want my niece to be exposed to? Will I have to deal with her crying and screaming from such bad dreams? Nah, of course not. I'm not living there.
The not-much-older sister says it:
"No monsters, no ghosts
No devils, no witches
No people coming through the kitchen
Breaking the dishes
No devils coming out of the mirror
No dolls coming alive
[this space reserved for personal, specific prayer]
And all well with the world. Amen."
I paused the movie, went and wrote it down, for there was a cute rhyme in it. Since I will be an uncle soon, I thought about sending it to my brother and favorite sister-in-law. As I wrote the words down, I saw the fictional things that draw fear in children, "monsters, ghosts, devils, witches," and then the dose of reality about burglars. It made me think it wasn't such a cute poem anymore, and reminded me of the prayers I said as a child.
I thought of this classic one my family used to recite:
"Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray thee Lord, my soul to keep
If I should die before I wake
I pray thee Lord, my soul to take."
Awfully cute rhyme, huh? Back-to-back couplets. It's nice to know I was facing my own mortality at the age of five without even knowing it.
Or how about this one my father taught us to say, though we had no idea what it meant:
"San Jorge bendito,
Amarra tus animalitos
Con tu cordoncito bendito
Para que no nos vayan a picar"
The prayer sounds cute with the rhymes and all the sweet little "-itos." Here's the translation: "Blessed Saint George, tie up the little animals with your blessed cord so they will not bite us." The little animals it refers to are snakes, spiders, scorpions, etc.
Sure these prayers are for the sake of protection, yet these are morbid, scary thoughts, acknowledging children's fears--from monsters to death to spiders. In that acknowledgement, if aware of what is being said, the thoughts pop into the children's heads right before bedtime.
Do children really believe in this protection? Do they really get any rest at all? In the minds of children, couldn't the saying of the prayers simply manifest these fears before them, in closets, under beds? Haven't their parents seen Evil Dead 2 or Candyman? Have they not learned?
Is this something I want my niece to be exposed to? Will I have to deal with her crying and screaming from such bad dreams? Nah, of course not. I'm not living there.
posted by matty at 8:16 AM
5 Comments:
I think it's a good idea to acknowledge those fears and to then "do" something about them - make the child feel as if there is some magic circle that will protect him/her as they sleep. Isn't that what all prayer is (says the agnostic)? A wish for some superpower to throw "his" cloak of protection over us; to keep us safe; make us good? A fervent hope that we're not all alone in this world?
Great idea for kids -
I remember reciting the first poem as a child. Then again, my two "imaginary friends" we named Freddy and Jason. Makes you wonder which I thought had more power to protect me....
I definitely agree with the first comment. When I was little I had a little green glass dome by my bed that was magic--it kept monsters away. All I had to do was tap it three times before going to sleep. The thing is still kicking around the house. I saw it on the windowsill in the kitchen one time and explained to my husband what it had been. He laughed and told me it was some sort of insulator thing from a utility pole.
Anyhow, I think it was probably good of my parents to acknowledge that I was afraid of something, even if that fear wasn't exactly reasonable, and give me something to do about it. Maybe if we'd had religion, I would have done a better job getting over my fear of burglars and fires. The green glass didn't help much with those.
Well, we all know that prayer is evil, right? That's why so many people wat to ban it in schools. But has anyone ever thought about nursery rhymes that our children are taught in schools?
Ring around the rosie
Pocket full of posies
Ashes, ashes
We all fall down
About roses, right? Well, maybe when you're 5 but then I learned that it was about the Black Plague, the dark rings around the victims' rosie red blotches on their skin, the flowers people would stuff the victims' pockets because they probably weren't allowed to come home to spread the disease (thus, no way to wash themselves... they stunk) and the inevitable falling down and dying. Do you want your niece learning that one, now?
Can I ask why it is that prayers like the ones you mentioned in your blog, Matty, are viewed as bed or evil or whatever instead of just being REAL. Real things to fear. Now a grown adult, I still hope the bad people and monsters and stuff don't come my way when I fall asleep.
http://www.snopes.com/language/literary/rosie.htm
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