Cats and Carols

Here are some photo’s of my cats. My friend Betsy took them last weekend.

Adelaide loves her “perches”, and the shyer Ada is happy enough when I hold her. The more so, when we are in black and white uniforms.


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“Away in a manger” is a Christmas hymn which is well loved in the United Kingdom and the United States (though with different tunes).


It used to be attributed to Martin Luther.

These days we know that the text comes from the greatest of all hymn writers. She/he is known as “Anonymous”.
I did not like this hymn when I was a child. It seemed to “talk down” to children.

In fact, many of the “Hymns for Children” shared that fault. They were written by adults - for children.

I much preferred the “grown up hymns”. One example is “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation”

When I first heard that hymn, at about aged 9, I was intrigued by two words: “Ponder anew”.


Those two words were magical for me at aged 9. They still are.

“Pondering anew” is one of the best of all human activities.

Back to “Away in a manger”. I cannot sing:

“The cattle are lowing,
the baby awakes.
But little Lord Jesus.
No crying he makes”.

Any little baby cries a lot. It’s part of the package.

So I sing

“And little Lord Jesus.
LOUD crying he makes”.

If the “little Lord Jesus” of the song is truly human, then surely he cried out loud!