The singer is Odetta, AKA the voice of the Civil Rights Movement. She’s been singing folk songs and popular ballads since way back in the sixties and even before that. She was a mentor to Bob Dylan and Joan Baez and Janis Joplin and a favorite of Martin Luther King Jr. The song takes me back to the Sunday School days of my youth when we used to sing it sitting in a circle in our little chairs. It was a lot of fun. We weren’t quite as good as Odetta but we would sing it with enthusiasm.
I ran across it recently in one of the Garrison Keillor and Friends posts that I get in my inbox and thought, wow, the perfect accompaniment for this weeks barista guest: Hallie from Rose Hip Coffee. I’ve been visiting Rose Hip Coffee since they opened a year ago and Hallie has been there almost that long. She’s inspiring with her quiet, observant demeanor and sweet smile, always ready to listen and respond.
I’m a big admirer of baristas. They laugh at my dumb jokes. I find that helpful and encouraging, generous in a way, a kindness. Hallie’s good at it. So here’s to Hallie. Let your little light shine.
Click at the top to play the podcast.
this little light of mine