OK, so not traditional, but talk of school assemblies unearthed memories of a hymn/song from the hymnbook that would have been cutting edge when it was printed in the 1970s, but was already very dated when we used it in the 90s. I always sniggered at the line "sowing the seeds of a new life" and thought that "the Rhonda" must be somewhere very exotic given the references to Melbourne, Peking and "Paree"(!). I'm cringing as I reread the words - outdated on so many levels...
I belong to a family, the biggest on earth
Ten thousand every day are coming to birth
Our name isn't Dallas or Hasted or Jones
It's a name every man should be proud he owns
Refrain: The family of Man keeps growing
The family of Man keeps sowing
The seeds of a new life every day
I've got a sister in Melbourne, a brother in Paree
The whole wide world is dad and mum to me
Wherever you go you'll find my kin
Whatever the creed or the colour of skin
The miner in the Rhondda, the coolie in Peking
The men across the ocean who plough, reap and spin
They've got a life and others to share it
So let's bridge the oceans and declare it;
From the North Pole ice to the snow at the other
There is not a man I wouldn't call my brother
But there isn't much time, I've had my fill
Of the men of war who want to kill
Some people say the world's a horrible place
But it's just as good or bad as the human race
Dirt and misery or health and joy
Man can build or can destroy
OMG