In Memory of Dr. Clyde Cook

I was so sorry to hear (from Clint) that former Biola President Clyde Cook passed away on Friday night.

There is already a blog up collecting stories, and Clint had some nice things to say too. My own memories of Dr. Cook are a little dim but I remember him as a nice man and a good President, and thankfully he was not at all boring when he spoke in chapel (this was always important to me!). I don't think the Biola would have been the school it was without Dr. Cook, and since I loved the school despite its flaws I am very thankful to him. Here's my memory:

My favorite memory of Dr. Cook is from one of our "12 Days of Christmas" chapels. We had these every year, and the gym where we met would be divided into 12 parts, with each section singing one part of the 12 Days song. It tended to get a little wild, particularly in the "lords a leapin" section. Lots of the guys ended up doing some serious acrobatics in the bleachers, riding the crowd, etc. Everyone knew which section of the gym went with each portion of the song, and the rowdy boys made sure to sit in number 11 every year so they could be a'leaping. But during this particular year, someone in charge of chapel decided to thwart this, and re-assigned the verses to different sections of the gym. (I can't remember for sure, but for some reason I keep thinking someone had decided to be nasty and had assigned them to be the maids a milking. Or was it the ladies dancing? It was something insulting. LOL)

Anyway, the would-be leaping lords weren't the only ones who were disappointed by the newly shuffled sections. Dr. Cook and his wife, Annabelle, had for years been "two turtledoves," so they always made sure to sit in the turtledove section -- which had just been changed without their knowledge.

So the lords grumbling in the crowd were ignored by those leading chapel, and we started the song. When we got to the doves, most eyes in the gym were directed at the Cooks, who had apparently decided to ignore whatever section they were supposed to be singing. They had risen to their feet and were defiantly cuddled together, deciding that nobody could make them geese (or whatever) when they wanted to be turtledoves. Naturally, everyone cheered. =)

I always thought it this was so sweet, and I often thought of it when I saw Dr. Cook walking on campus.