Today, we had our ward primary presentation. It was Joshua's first program to participate in. He did a really great job. For his part, he was assigned "Jesus Christ is my Savior and Redeemer." He decided, though, that he wanted to say "Jesus Christ is Our Savior and Our Redeemer." We talked about it, and he wanted to make sure that everyone knows that Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer for everyone, not just him. So thoughtful and knowledgeable.
One important thing to know about Joshua. He can project his voice with the best of them. He's the type of kid that will never NEED a microphone. When he got up to say his part, it was clear and loud enough for all to hear. It was really wonderful to hear. Because of his projection talents, we were also able to delight in his contribution to the songs. I don't think most people noticed, until we got to the song "Follow The Prophet." This is a song with a really fun to sing chorus. All the kids know the chorus line very quickly. Joshua, even as a Sunbeam (first year in primary when you are 3 on the 1st of January), knows it VERY well. He sang his heart out. Not exactly WITH everyone else, but definitely LOUDER than everyone else combined. This song has 9 verses. The kids sang 8 of them. Each time through the chorus, he became a little more obvious. The entire congregation was rolling by the end of it, and Peter and I were in tears from laughing so hard. He was able to keep up the volume for each of the subsequent songs. People throughout the congregation kept glancing at me and winking. I think they wanted to reassure me that I shouldn't be embarrassed. Thank you for your concern. I do appreciate it. I think if I hadn't seen another little girl do the exact same thing several years ago, I may have been mortified. But, as it is, I was just proud of him. Proud of him that he knew his songs. And proud of him that he loves the gospel enough to want to make sure that everyone knew that he knows that these things are true.
Emily is still in nursery, and will be there for another year. In our church, the kids get to go to nursery when they turn 18 months. Then, when they are 3 on the first of January, they move up to a class called Sunbeams. The Sunbeams meet with the rest of the primary, who are the children ages 3-12. The nursery kids don't participate in the program, so Emily was sitting with the rest of the family for the presentation. As she was sitting there listening, not so intently, she suddenly stopped what she was doing (she was playing with a nice girl who was sitting behind us) when she heard Joshua singing, and said "That's my boy." She likes to say that Joshua is her boy and Jessica is her baby. She is so funny. But even Emily recognized her brother's voice as he sang with all his heart, and at the top of his lungs, with all the other primary children.
Good job, Joshua. I hope to be able to hear you sing each and every year you are in the primary program... even when you are 11 years old. I love you, Joshua. Follow the prophet, and you will always be where you need to be.
The other day, we were talking about the German language. I told him that in German, they say "Nein" for "No." He thought about that for a moment, then asked, "What do they say 'five' for?"
