Granny's Advice

“Oh, children, you are dirty,
Why couldn’t you stay clean?
I’ve just this minute changed you
And you’re not fit to be seen!”

And thus I growled and grumbled;
But Granny’s, worldly wise,
Said, “Let them play in dirt, my dear,
And let them make mud pies.

It’s only right and natural
A little child should play.
It’s only when their very sick
They’ll keep clean all day.

And there’s a little saying,
Which I find is very true,
That Satan finds some mischief still
For idle hands to do.

So let them make their little pies,
And let them stack the coals;
The folk that have the grimy hands,
Oft have the whitest souls.

And if you need a helping hand,
It’s often times I’ve seen,
The hands that do the helping,
Are the hands that aren’t too clean!” —Elsie Pearson

—Mike Riley, Gospel Snippets