#403, in which there is a song high above the trees

Today we consider "Do You Hear What I Hear?" It's a pretty little melody, one that latches on in your brain easily, but with what I consider to be a lot of fluff for the lyrics. We spend a lot of time describing the star "dancing in the night with a tail as big as a kite," but not much time singing about the Child.

But we've talked quite a bit about Him thus far. Take a moment and see what you can notice in the second verse:

Said the little lamb to the shepherd boy,
"Do you hear what I hear?
Ringing through the sky, shepherd boy,
Do you hear what I hear?
A song, a song high above the trees
With a voice as big as the sea,
With a voice as big as the sea."

Notice anything? To me, this isn't a song about the birth of the Child Jesus so much as it's a song about His appearance. Heralds appeared to shepherds, and a star appeared in the heavens, but to many, the night the Savior of the world was born was probably much like any other night. There were no proclamations, no time off from work, no celebrations of the glorious event. Instead, everyone was huddled in inns, heading home to be taxed. If they were thinking of anything, it was likely making sure that everything was in order for that.

Yet in this song, we ask ourselves if we have heard the message. The announcement of His coming is hovering over the top of the song (peaking at that floating "I"), if only we will crane our ears up to hear. It's there, "dancing in the night," "high above the trees," freely available for us, provided we make the effort. 

Many of the Savior's teachings included some variation of the phrase, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear." It was the same at His birth, and it is the same today. We can make the effort to hear His message in our lives. He calls to us with a still small voice, and it takes effort and practice to make it out. If we don't make that effort, it's very easy to miss, just as I imagine it would have been easy to miss His birth all those years ago. If you're taking the time to read these, I imagine you're making that effort, but just the same, try to take some time to see, hear, and know what we say we do when we sing this song. The Lord came to earth, and He still lives.

Previously in this series

Wexford Carol

I Saw Three Ships

We Three Kings

Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella

In the Bleak Midwinter


Little Drummer Boy