And the Ceiling Came Tumbling Down

AND THE CEILING CAME TUMBLING DOWN
by Bill Fullerton

What follows is a more or less true story, honest.

While I was but a wee, callow youth, maybe three, my father took it upon himself to put a new ceiling in the middle bedroom. When the project was finished, he posed his lovely wife and snot-nosed son on the bed under the new ceiling and proceeded to take a few celebratory snapshots.

Moments after he'd finished and taken the film from the camera, the adhesive holding the cork(?) tiles in place went on strike. At first, the process seemed like slow motion as the interlocked tiles began to sag, one following another. Then the entire ceiling decided to get in on the act and joined in gleefully yielding to the laws of gravity.

Falling tiles were everywhere. I can only image how my father felt, but I can promise you it was more than a bit traumatic for a three-year old, even with his mother sitting beside him on the bed amidst the tumbling tiles. That is to say, I tuned up and started to cry.

I'll never know which one started singing, but being in the church choir, they were soon doing a pretty fair acapella rendition of, "Joshua Fit The Battle of Jericho and the Walls Came Tumbling Down." Thanks to that song, instead of my world crashing down around me, I was in the middle of a great, and very messy, adventure--perfect for a three-year old boy and for making good memories.


Joshua fit the battle of Jericho, Jericho, Jericho,
Joshua fit the battle of Jericho
and the walls came tumbling down.

Oh, you may talk about your king of Gideon,
you may talk about your man of Saul,
but there's none like good old Joshua
at the battle of Jericho

Oh, Joshua fit the battle of Jericho, Jericho, Jericho,
Joshua fit the battle of Jericho
and the walls came tumbling down.


Bayou Bill