'cause the meat has grain

I was just thinking about the Wendy's training videos I watched as a peon there. One of the few places where the training videos weren't referred to with a "we don't do it that way here."

There was this absolutely horrendous rap song about working grill:

Lay it down like you know you should
'cause the meat has grain, just like wood

Completely awful. But I still remember it.

That's what poetry is for: memory. It's why all of the important legends in all cultures are epic songs and poems. (rhythm is for synchronized action, but that's for later.) Because poetry has such specific rules, you can fill in blanks by using the cues from the lines you do know. For example,

America, the beautiful (something, something) (something -ood) with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea.

Sea. Hmm. Thee. God grant his grace to THEE. And from thy (-ood, I don't know)

Hmm. Amber waves of grain. (Amber and purple - mountain tops) And purple mountain's majesty, across the fruited plain. America, America. God shed his grace on thee. And crown thy good with Brotherhood from sea to shining see.

What comes before Amber? And is there something: until we see thee rise or still we see thee rise? And skies? (see lyrics here)

Anyway, a lot better than I can do with the Declaration of Independence.

When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary (to form a more perfect union?, I don't know.)

There's nothing left to give me clues.

Oww. It looks like I'm confusing the Declaration of Independence with the Gettysburg Address. Both of them moving, beautiful documents. That I can't remember.

I can even remember a Russian children's choosing rhyme. Aughti Gaughti Shlee Soldati. (forgive the spelling. I'm probably not even pronouncing it right). But I can remember it's something about a soldier. And soldier is Soldat in Russian. There's more of it, but all I have is the first line.

Enough of that. I hope I've embarrassed myself sufficiently to make my point.

Unfortunately, songs and poems are really hokey in the context of training. Even if you have your students create the lyrics. I wish there was an effective, non-hokey way to use this incredibly effective mnemonic.