Rockabye Baby (Baby) Bieber

I know that this may seem like an odd topic for a lullaby blog but I promise it will connect:

The lady behind the ticket booth gave me a puzzled look, and I knew she really wanted to say, “Are you serious??” It was a Wednesday afternoon and I had asked for a ticket to the Justin Bieber movie “Never Say Never”. I could understand her confusion: clearly I was not twelve. I too was confused when she charged me three dollars more for a pair of 3-D glasses--- 3-D for Avatar I could understand, but Justin Bieber?

Now it’s time to admit that until last month I didn’t know who he was. “You’re kidding,” said my friend (also not twelve) who had mentioned his name and was greeted by a blank expression, “He’s as popular as the Beatles. As a musician, you should see this movie.”

So I went. The ONLY person in a 500-seat theater, I laughed out loud, and soon realized that the movie was about much more than a young pop star’s big concert---it was actually the story of the importance of lullabies! OK, not only lullabies (Does his “Baby” qualify as a lullaby?) but the importance of music for all of us. It’s how we communicate, how we express love and longing and happiness and sadness.

And this movie addresses the vital need to encourage musical interest in young children. This boy obviously had huge talent from a very young age, and luckily his mother recognized that talent and his passion to make music, and helped him to achieve his goals. She found him instruments, lessons, and cheered him on. If he had been in a less supportive environment, now there might not be such a good outlet for the emotions of almost every 12 year old girl in the world.

Sharing music with your children at a very young age, beginning with singing and playing lullabies for babies, is a key to helping them develop a life-long appreciation for all learning.

“It was good,” I told the ticket taker as I turned in my 3-D glasses. She gave me a weak smile and turned to the growing line of teenage girls sneaking in after school.