On the twelfth day of christmas my true love gave to me…… Twelve Drummers Drumming
On this final day of twelve days of christmas song, it is no suprise with the build up it is the noisiest of the gifts for the grand finale! What a celebration of gifts to get to this point in the song, there has been a feast of different festive birds, celebration in dance and music. It is widely accepted that the dummers drumming are represative of what is called the Apostles Creed. This is the twelve point procolomation used by different Christian denominations of what it means to be a follower of Christ. Like the song, it has been handed down the generations and known off by heart by many people. It is ofen said together as comminuty of Christians coming together in a powerful declaration of common faith. From the Church of England:
The Apostles’ Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
For an Eco take of the dummers drumming gift, I have spent some time researcing some different Eco musical instuments. My final choice was a Susainable Toys solid drum from Babpuir which is a fantastic company selling Eco products with children and family in mind. (Check out my post on swans for more ideas from this company). It is made from FSC wood and rubber trees that no longer produce latex, non-formaldehyde glue, organic colour pigments water-colour dyes. The drum comes packaged in recycled, non-toxic packaging which can go straight into the recycling. It really is a high quality item that will provide sensory play. There are many other Eco ideas for musical instruments like from simple bells that sound like santa’s sleigh. Making music is really enriching for children and a wonderful way to encourage development in children.
These musical gifts have now completed the mini-series on the Twleve Days of Christmas. I have personally really enjoyed considering the meaning of the lyrics and have learnt so much more about the different aspects of faith from the Spirit represented in the swans to the beatitudes, ten commandment and eleven faithful apostles. I have certainly had some fun thinking about some eco ideas too along the way. It has helped me to think about the true love and meaning for this season, remembering that all the fan fair points to the simple message found right at the begining in the partridge in the pear tree.
On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, Twelve Drummers Drumming, Eleven Pipers Piping, Ten Lords a Leaping, Nine Ladies Dancing, Eight maids a Milking, Seven Swans a Swimming, Six Geese a Laying, Five Gold Rings. Four Calling Birds, Three French Hens, Two Turtle Doves and A Partridge in a Pear Tree.
Little Eco Gifts 