Every now and then, I a little ditty pops into my head. It is one of the few sound memories I have of my grandfather, Albert James Belanus, Sr., who died when I was about seven years old. I remember him as a tall, slim Dutchman from Northern New Jersey with a shock of white hair and bushy black eyebrows. He sometimes ate cold rice with milk and sugar. He loved Christmas and he and my grandmother spoiled us rotten buying toys with their Christmas Club money.
Anyhow, he used to sing a little song that I only figured out was a naughty song years and years later, after he was long buried. I realized then why he got a twinkle in his eye when he sang it. I don’t think my sister remembers it, or maybe this was something between Pop-Pop and me. It went something like this, in my memory:
A-sol, a-sol, a-soldier boy was he (repeat)
He had two pis- two pistols on his knee (repeat)
There might have been more, but that is all I recall, except for a sort of chorus that sounded to me like “And step, comarade, and step comarade, and step tra-la-la-la.” Which led me to believe that maybe it was a marching song for actual soldiers, though my grandfather was never a soldier.
It never occurred to me to search for other versions on the internet. (And I call myself a folklorist?) But, here it is, and here, along with discussions about its origins and alternative versions. (I can see now why my grandfather might have edited out some of the additional verses for my little ears.) Seems as if it might have started as a soldier’s song and then made it’s way to the playground. Where my grandfather learned it, we will never know. But, it is so ingrained in my memory that I recall it more than 50 years later.
The power of music, the power of memory, the power of love.
s (as in, the neighborhood kids since we only have one) used to play in when they were younger. I never noticed, but this metal gate has the name of 
at houses
dal Basin to see the blooms. (Full disclosure, this photo is of last year’s blooms.) We began to talk about all the things that make us grumpy while walking around the Tidal Basin during Cherry Blossom Madness. These include: Photographers who set their tripods up in the middle of the walkway. Parents with double strollers hogging the sidewalk. People jogging – really, you can’t find a better place to jog than a sidewalk clogged with tourists? People walking multiple dogs. Not just one little dog, but three medium to large sized dogs. On long leashes that get tangled around people’s legs. Oblivious people taking selfies with the trees. Kids who pick blossoms off the trees for a souvenir. Okay, so there are always too many people, not enough sidewalk, and things that are going to annoy you. But, still, the cherry blossoms are gorgeous and despite it all, you have to enjoy them and share them with everyone, be they considerate or not. The blossoms remind us of everything lovely and fleeting, soft and seasonal.