A few days ago, one of my students asked me, “Ms. Robles, do you sing all the time?  Like in your car and everything?”  (She asked me this because I had just sung the next instructions to the class instead of speaking them.)  “Oh, yes.  I sing constantly.”

I sing while driving, while showering, while curling my hair, while reading a book, and certainly while cleaning my home.  Could there be anything nicer than humming a tune while working?  Hearing the melody go by makes the work more pleasant.  Feeling the vibration of my voice in my chest makes the experience more rewarding.  A song in a work makes a work a piece of art, and we all need art daily.

Since being asked about my singing habits, I’ve noticed that I have acute tendencies.  I tend to sing certain sets of songs while doing certain work.

For instance, these are the Top Five songs I find myself singing while washing the dishes:

6. Desperado, by The Eagles–I began this one in rotation after I watched In America because that little girl just melted me.  I had to include it even though it makes 6 top 5’s.
5. Oh, the Deep, Deep, Love of Jesus, that classic hymn.
4. Poughkeepsie, a lovely piece by Over the Rhine, which I discovered in college–a definite benefit of befriending my chapel buddy, K.A.
3. Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child, that excellent haunt brought to my heart by Dr.M.H. of the Wheaton faculty.
2. Someone To Watch Over Me, from the creative mind of George Gershwin; this was the first song I ever studied in voice lessons.
1. ‘Till There Was You, which is likely my favorite song from a musical, in this case The Music Man.

I can’t say exactly why these are my dish-washing songs, but they are.  They sneak up on me, so that around 7 each night, you can find me with a pot of sudsy water and a languorous melody.

I sing.  All the time. Especially while washing the dishes.