Joy To The World

We were lucky...the bad weather is supposed to come in tomorrow. So our final program of 2009 was held on a beautiful cold, sunny day. The folks at Northside United Methodist Church, many dressed in red, were ready to party. Before we sang, we enjoyed another excellent covered dish dinner. The food table stretched out forever. Too many yummy things to even taste many of them. And as long as this table was, the desserts filled another table at the opposite end of the room.

After this wonderful meal, the Yesterukes had fun singing and entertaining the great audience. This was our fifth Christmas program in 17 days--and our best. Yes, practice is a good thing. We've been doing a mix of our regular songs and our Christmas songs. A favorite at the beginning of our program has been the 1952 hit, How Much Is That Doggie In The Window. Our version comes complete with "barking dogs" in the background. Today's audience included a seeing eye dog (our first canine listener) who rose to his alert position when he heard the other "dogs" in the room. Not sure he enjoyed that part as much as the rest of the audience.

One lady told us afterward that this would be her biggest Christmas celebration. Another person who has faced some hard times recently said today WAS Christmas for her this year. And a gentleman, with a huge smile on his face, asked, "Can I come play with your group after Christmas?" His wife standing right behind him exclaimed, "And I plan to see that he gets there!"

It's been a great year for the Yesterukes. It will take a little time to gather the stats, but we're pretty sure we've entertained at more places and for bigger audiences than ever before. Our group has grown again. Our first concert was given by six of us in 2007. There are 20 Yesterukes as of today. But if the wife of the smiling man is right, we'll grow a little more in 2010!

Joy To The World, as of the late 20th century, it's the most-published Christmas hymn in North America