LADYBIRDS

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I had occasion to mention the child rhyme regarding ladybird to someone and it started me thinking about how horrible it is:

Ladybird, ladybird fly away home,

Your house is on fire and your children are gone.

Here are some notes on ladybirds.

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There are about 5,000 different species of ladybirds in the world. These much loved insects are also known as lady beetles or ladybugs, and in many cultures they’re considered good luck. They come in many different colours and patterns, but the most familiar in Oz and the UK is the seven-spot ladybird, which has a shiny, red-and-black body.

Most people like ladybirds because they are pretty, graceful and harmless to humans. But farmers love them because they eat aphids and other plant-eating pests.- in it’s year-long life, a single seven-spot ladybird can eat more than 5000 aphids.

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The name “ladybird” originated in the Middle Ages when the insects were known as the “beetle of Our Lady”. They were named after the Virgin Mary, who in early religious paintings was often shown wearing a red cloak.

The spots of the seven spot ladybird were said to symbolise seven joys and seven sorrows

The Seven Joys of the Virgin (or of Mary, the Mother of Jesus) is a popular devotion to events of the life of the Virgin Mary, frequently depicted in medieval devotional literature and art. The seven joys are usually listed as:

The Annunciation

The Nativity of Jesus

The Adoration of the Magi

The Resurrection of Christ

The Ascension of Christ to Heaven

The Pentecost or Descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and Mary

The Coronation of the Virgin in Heaven

The Seven Sorrows are events in the life of Mary that are a popular devotion and are frequently depicted in art.

Traditionally, the Seven Sorrows are:

The Prophecy of Simeon in Luke 2;

The Flight into Egypt in Matthew 2;

The Loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple of Jerusalem, also in Luke 2;

Mary meeting Jesus on the Via Dolorosa, the Fourth station of the Cross which can be found in Luke 23:27 (See John 19:25 for context).;

The Crucifixion of Jesus on Mount Calvary in Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, and especially John 19;

Jesus's Descent from the Cross in Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, and John 19;

The Burial of Jesus by Joseph of Arimathea, also in Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, and John 19;

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Ladybird, ladybird fly away home,

Your house is on fire and your children are gone.

These are the first lines of an English-language nursery rhyme that also has German analogues. The English version has been dated to at least 1744.

The verse has several popular forms, including:

Ladybird, ladybird fly away home,

Your house is on fire and your children are gone,

All except one, and her name is Ann,

And she hid under the baking pan.

A shorter, grimmer version concludes:

Your house is on fire,

Your children shall burn!

American names include “ladybug”, first recorded in 1699. Also in the US, doodlebugs are substituted for ladybugs and are exhorted to “Come out of your hole”.

Because of the religious connotation of the names, one speculation dates the rhyme back to the 16th century, that it was sung as a warning at a time when there was legislation against Catholics.

Another explanation holds that the origins of the name “ladybug” trace back to when European farmers would pray to the Virgin Mary to prevent their crops from being destroyed by pests. Ladybugs then ate up the insects. They were called “Lady beetles” after the Virgin Mary and have always been loved by farmers since. According to other lore, farmers recite the rhyme to save the insects who do them this service before setting fire to stubble fields, hence homes being on fire and children gone.

Among children, it is common to place the ladybird on their hand or blow it from their clothing and make a wish while reciting the rhyme.

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Us older ones will recall Lady Bird Johnson.

Claudia Alta "Lady Bird" Johnson (1912 – 2007) was the first lady of the United States from 1963 to 1969 as the wife of then president Lyndon B. Johnson. She served as the second lady from 1961 to 1963 when her husband was vice president,

Photo portrait of First Lady Lady Bird Johnson in the back yard of the White House,

As First Lady, Johnson broke new ground by interacting directly with Congress, employing her press secretary, and making a solo electioneering tour. She advocated beautifying the nation's cities and highways ("Where flowers bloom, so does hope"). The Highway Beautification Act was informally known as "Lady Bird's Bill". She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 1984, the highest honors bestowed upon a U.S. civilian.

From Wikipedia:

She was named for her mother's brother Claud. During her infancy, her nursemaid, Alice Tittle, said that she was as "pretty as a ladybird". Opinions differ about whether the name refers to a bird or a ladybird beetle, the latter of which is commonly referred to as a "ladybug" in North America. The nickname virtually replaced her first name for the rest of her life. Her father and siblings called her Lady, and her husband called her Bird—the name she used on her marriage license. During her teenage years, some classmates would call her Bird to provoke her since she reportedly was not fond of the name.

 

A photo of Lady Bird Taylor at around age three