Joulukalenteri - Christmas Calendar - vol. 18

Kauneimmat vai kauheimmat joululaulut? Olin tänään yli 2 tuntia tuolla kirkossa laulamassa, 12 tunnin maraton sujui ainakin sen aikaa ihan sutjakasti. Ihan mielelläni olisin jollotellut myös niitä ei-hartaita veisuja, mutta ehkä niistä nyt riittää sitten se kotona kuunteleminen (ja satunnainen lauleskelu).

Most beautiful or most awful Christmas songs? It's a church tradition to organize these singing events during Christmas time, mostly before the actual holiday. Today there was a 12-hour-maraton in my "local" church and I went - to sing for over 2 hours :D I would have liked to sing also those non-Christian songs, but maybe I'll do with listening to them at home (and occasionally singing-a-long).

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Yksi kauneimpia on Varpunen jouluaamuna (tosin eri juttu sitten kuka sitä esittää). Nykyään pelkät sanatkin meinaa jo itkettää - vanha eukko kun olen :) Lainaus Wikipedista: "Runossa kajastaa Topeliuksen oma suru: hänen poikansa kuoli runon kirjoittamista edeltäneen vuoden keväänä."

One of The Most Beautiful ones is Sparrow on Christmas Morning (Finnish song, by Otto Kotilainen). The lyrics alone almost make me cry - old as I am :) The poem is by Zacharias (Sakari) Topelius, a Finnish poet / writer. He wrote it after his son died the previous year's Spring.

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Snow has covered the fields of green.
Frozen all over are the lake and the stream.
Lonesome little sparrow with nothing to eat.
Frozen all over are the lake and the stream.

Sitting on the porch, one sweet little girl.
Beseeching the sparrow, come eat if you will.
Christmas time, the sparrow homeless and sad.
Come little sparrow, eat all you can.

And now the sweet sparrow flew near the girl:
"I am thankful and I will take the seed from you.
God wants to reward you some day now
I am thankful and I will take the seed from you"

Little girl, I am not a creature of this world.
I am your brother from the heavens above.
You gave your treat to feed those in need.
Your brother who flies with the angels.

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(p.s. I found the translation via google, so it's not mine.)