For All the Children I Have Ever Loved

From my car mirror hangs a rainbow string of plastic beads,

A rosary that I take in hand and say the words,

“For all the children I have ever loved.”

Sometimes, there are more words.

Other times, there are not.

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For I have loved hundreds of children and words cannot contain them.

I have loved the spider slayer, the whisk fixer, the cake decorator extraordinaire.

I have loved the soccer ball launcher, the logical thinker, the asker of a hundred questions. In math class.

I have loved the poetry writer, the butterfly watcher, the bold singer and the free spirit.

I have loved the artist, the inventor, the farmer and the truth seeker.

I have loved the book readers and the book haters.

I have loved the quietly mischievous, the outspoken softies, and those who try so hard to never do anything wrong.

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I have heard them joke and heard them whine and heard their stories.

I have watched them toddle.

I have watched them grow.

I have watched them scrunch up their faces in confusion.

I have watched them find themselves as they wrestled their thoughts unto the page.

I have watched them help the helpless.

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They have given me crayon-drawn notes

Defiant challenges

Sleepless nights

Unconditional love.

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Yes, I have loved them.

I still do.

It is for these that I hang beads.

It is for these that I bring blessing.

For All the Children I Have Ever Loved

May wonder never cease to catch you by surprise,
A falling star streaking into your world
From the outskirts of Eternity.

May you know God by name,
The names by which He introduces Himself
The names by which He is known.

May you always know that you are loved
With a Love full enough to suspend galaxies
And specific enough to seek out you.

May you love fiercely and gently.
May you truly see your neighbour
And not fear him.

May you have the humility to admit you’re wrong
And the strength to stand for Truth.

May you be protected from the enemy of your soul
And the enemy in your soul.

May you have the courage to create beauty
For the one who needs it
And the One who created you.

Fear neither failure nor success,
Pursue the work God placed
In your hands, in your imagination, in your soul.

I would that you were
A seedbed for hope,
A life rope of faith,
A coal warmly glowing.

Be holy.
Be human.
Be His.

Laugh and cry.
Work hard and sit still.
Do justly.
Give mercy.
Pray often.
Build well the kingdom of our God.