Robert Munsch-Canadian writer of children's books- wrote his poem in response to a letter he received from a child in Florida, asking if it was cold in Canada. Munsch sent him this response:
Oh the great Canadian Winter
Is not so very cold.
I once knew a kid who didn’t freeze
Until he was ten years old.
And just last year in Ottawa,
When they cleared away the ice,
They found two people still alive
And they said Winter was nice.
On Baffin Island the Inuit
Go swimming with polar bears.
Of course they always come back dead.
That’s why they go in pairs.
So don’t stay inside when it’s snowing,
Don’t stay inside when there’s ice.
Go out and get frozen like a brick,
And then you’ll think Winter is nice.
Of course, our concert was supposed to be all Canadian Christmas songs this year and obviously The Cherry Tree lyrics predate Canada. The tune to which we sang it, however, is uniquely Canadian. I've mentioned Helen Creighton, the Nova Scotian folklorist, before; she traveled around the province for years, collecting folk stories and songs from remote communities, often recording them. In 1948, she was in Cherry Brook and met a man named William Riley who sang the song for her, to a tune which is unique to the area. It was a choral arrangement of this melody which we sang last night. Here's a link to Helen Creighton's original recording of William Riley singing The Cherry Tree Carol.