"bright morning stars are rising / day is a breaking in my soul"

[larryhammer]

My current lullaby for TBD is a Chinese one, "Yao Yah Yao," translatable as "Rock-a-bye" -- yáo does indeed mean "to rock." We learned it from the linked recording, and currently sing it like this:

Yao yah yao
Yao yah yao
Sleep you're safe with me
Rock you till you're big
Rock you till you're strong
Baby grow up soon
Baby grow up soon

Pinyin lyrics found online (without tones, sorry, and my google-fu cannot find the hanzi): "Yao yah yao / Yao yah yao / Bao bao huai jung shuay / Yao ni jang da / Yo liao sheewang / Bao bao kuai jang da / Bao bao kuai jang da".

What's your favorite song for soothing the young to sleep? Any language.

---L.

Subject quote from "Bright Morning Stars," Anonymous.

Comments

[thistleingrey.livejournal.com]

The first part of "O Shenandoah" has worked for us, and sometimes the first part of "Lean On Me." We used to sing the first two bits of "You Are My Sunshine," which I now hate with the brilliance of suns: overexposure.

darkforge liked singing "Rainbow Connection" till it became requested sometimes as a delaying tactic--too long for the purpose. Sometimes I sing a slightly mutilated first verse of "Still Alive (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6ljFaKRTrI)"--except the ones who're in bed, and bake a neat bun . . . though I had to cut or slur some of the rest the time she wanted to know whether there's more to it.

ETA Perhaps I should contextualize: we have a longstanding habit of one book (or story), then one song, then out, so we haven't tried singing our daughter to sleep outright. Before age two I sometimes sang another song or three from the hallway, quietly, but the ritual is one and one. Mileage varies, as with everything else!

[larryhammer]

Oh, "O Shenandoah" would be lovely for this, given my history. (Growing up, I spent large parts of my summers in the Shanandoah Valley, in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.)

At the moment, the routine is bath, one story, a small bottle (which we're tapering off), then holding till she falls asleep. Lately, that last has been lengthening, and songs (sometimes requested) have been creeping into that part.

---L.