James Harrison Ramsden

West Point, 1958

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by Jim Ramsden on August 13, 2001:

When I was in the 3rd grade I remember for a period of several weeks my Dad and I both "worked" the early morning Mass at the Catholic chapel - he as lector and myself as altarboy. For me, it meant getting up earlier than normal. My Dad would load my bike into our station wagon and we would drive together to church. After Mass he would go to work and I would ride my bike to school. Getting up an hour earlier was a hassle, but still it was kind of fun to be tagging along with Dad. But what I remember most about those weeks was my Dad's preparation. Since the Mass was a small Mass, the lector (my Dad) was also required to lead the singing of each of the hymns. What impressed me wasn't so much that my Dad practiced these hymns beforehand (that I would have expected from him). What impressed me was that he practiced them at a slightly higher pitch than normal. The reason he did this was he knew if he sang at his normal pitch, the pitch would be too low for most women at the Mass. He purposely was trying to find some "middle ground" pitch that would make it easiest for all in attendance to sing the hymn. No detail was ever overlooked or too small. I love you Dad.

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