We started the service this morning with a quote from Hodding Carter, Jr:
There are two lasting bequests we can give our children. One is roots. The other is wings.

I’d like to reflect with you on the significance of roots and wings, and then I will read some quotes which pertain to the great significance of children in our lives, and our respsonsibility to care for them, whether or not they are “related” to us.
As I thought about roots, I pictured a huge tree, and it’s massive roots that burrow down, deep into the ground. The taller the tree is, the deeper its roots typically extend below the surface of the earth. This allows the tree to remain upright as it grows. Perhaps you have seen trees which have been blown over by intense storms. This may happen after the earth has been saturated and softened through excessive rainfall. Or sometimes roots have grown to be rather shallow, staying near the surface of the earth, because there has been inadequate rainfall to reach deeper roots. Ideally, roots go deep into the earth, providing balance and stability to the tree, as well as a route for nutrients and water to travel up into the trunk.
And then there are plants like Myrtle and strawberries, which have shallow roots and send forth runners.in all directions. While the roots aren’t deep, they are extensive, and very difficult to get rid of. When I have changed my mind about wanting one of these plants in a particular garden, I’ve sometimes found out that it’s a bit late to change my mind! And yet, these plants can be admired for their tenacity and demonstrate to us the great power inherent in underground connections. May we all find ways to send out runners and make connections which will strengthen and empower us.
I also have a picture in my mind of tumbleweed, blowing across the desert. The tumbleweed is without roots to anchor it, and is blown about by the wind. And bits of seaweed which have broken loose from the roots which once held them fast to the sea bottom, are tossed about by the waves and by ocean currents.
In Spirit of Life, the final song that we will sing this morning, there is a line that says- roots hold me close. Families and the church fellowship can provide such roots, through the values and traditions which are passed along from generation to generation. These roots can hold us close and provide an anchor- stabiity amidst the currents of life. This can be very helpful to our children as they encounter the strong currents of the society in which they live, including peer pressure to try things which are not consistent with those values. If they know their roots, they will have an internal gauge to help them make decisions.
Another line in Spirit of Life says- Wings set me free. Perhaps it’s more difficult to think about wings than roots with a young child, but it’s helpful to consider them both. When birds hatch out of their eggs, they are kept comfortably in their nest for a while. But there comes a time when the nest becomes confining, the bird’s wings are becoming stronger, and it’s time to take flight. It’s a natural part of the growth process. It just happens. If the mother or father bird prevented it from happening, it would be unnatural and stifling. And yet, it can’t be rushed... it needs to unfold in its own time. I remember reading a story about a chrysalis, or cocoon, which was hurried up in its process... a person who was observing the chrysalis thought it was having difficulty breaking out to become a butterfly, so, trying to be helpful, she cut it open to allow the struggling butterfly to emerge. The butterfly did emerge, but it never was able to fly- somehow the struggle to get out of the cocoon was a necessary part of the process to strengthen the wings. Raising children can be like that too- we can try to be helpful and keep our children from struggling, but sometimes the struggle is a necessary part of growth. It can be difficult sometimes to discern when to help, and when to observe the process unfold. We can support each other in this process of discernment.
I heard it said once that ships are safest while in the harbor, but that ships weren’t built to stay in the harbor. In order to fulfill our destiny, our purpose for being, we need to leave the safety and security of the harbor, of the familiar, and take some risks and explore the unknown. In this way we will continue to grow.

Eleanor Roosevelt said:
One of the most important things for our young people to learn is the difficult art of being at home in the world. Ahead of them lies the gigantic, but infinitely rewarding, task of learning to know and understand other peoples, and the equally difficult task of helping other peoples to know and understand them.

The United Nations declared the Rights of the Child, and I quote (adapted):
All children have the right to what follows, no matter what their race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, or where they were born or who they were born to.

You have the special right to grow up and to develop physically and spiritually in a healthy and normal way, free and with dignity.

You have a right to a name and to be a member of a country.

You have a right to special care and protection and to good food, housing and medical services.

You have the right to special care if handicapped in any way.

You have the right to love and understanding, preferably from parents and family, but from the government where these cannot help.

You have the right to go to school for free, to play, and to have an equal chance to develop yourself and to learn to be responsible and useful. Your parents have special responsibilities for your education and guidance.

You have the right always to be among the first to get help.

You have the right to be protected against cruel acts or exploitation, e.g., you shall not be obliged to do work which hinders your development both physically and mentally. You should not work before a minimum age and never when that would hinder your health, and your moral and physical development.


You should be taught peace, understanding, tolerance, and friendship among all people.

Unfortunately, there are many children throughout the world, and in the United States, who don’t enjoy all these rights. And so, the World Religious Leaders wrote the following (adapted):
Save the children
Tortured by hunger and thirst
Ravaged by preventable disease
victimized by violence, savaged by the brutalities of war,
Save the children.

Protect the children
Stunted by suffering
deprived of beauty, joy, laughter
denied freedom, justice and peace
Thwarted by limitation due to race, religion,
age, sex, class, or caste.
Protect the children.

Care for the children
Nurtured by love, upheld by guidance
uplifted by understanding
Care for the children.
Enriched by a safe and healthy environment
empowered by education, challenged by opportunity, and
strengthened by the fullness of rights.
Care for the children.
Enhanced by taking their place in a global family
and enriched by differences
Care for the children.

Children are life and miracle, beauty, and mystery
fulfillment and promise.
Save the children.
Protect the children.
Care for the children.
May it be so.