Kumbaya

We just finished our little impromptu party in the hallway outside of our cabins while the kiddos slept, and it was probably the last time get to enjoy wine in the hallway before the students arrive. We hung out much longer than I expected, which is great, but since we’re going to bed I’ll only share one of the many stories from today.

There was a somewhat formal Captain’s Dinner with the Global Forum on Engagement that is aboard the ship with us (the one that brought Julian Bond and Sandra-Day O’Connor aboard with us). For those of us with kids, and others who didn’t feel like dressing up (a relatively significant group), we ate at the smaller of the two dining halls, in Deck 6.

So at some point during dinner, Elise starts singing “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” under her breath, like she often does. And each time she finished the song, she would sing it again, a little bit louder. And louder.

And louder.

Finally, Elise was belting “Twinkle Twinkle” so loudly that everyone in the dining hall stopped talking. For a minute, we all paused to listen do her best impression of Mariah Carey.

Until someone joined in. And then everybody joined in.

So for a few moments tonight, on a ship somewhere in the North Atlantic, a dining room-ful of people sang an impromptu version of “Twinkle Twinkle” led by a two-year-old girl. And all was well in the world.

We’ll wake up to a rainy Nova Scotia out our window in the moning. I’m off to bed.

P.S. It was sea sickness, not morning sickness.
P.P.S. Whew.