Each morning last week, I arrived here around 7:30 to make sure that we were ready to start the camp day. At about 7:56, the trickle of friends began, 25 children arriving in various states of sleepy, excited, cross-armed, and cartwheeling. Soon after 8, we were assembled by age group and singing together. The easy favorite of the week soon became what was affectionately known as the “get down song” and grew in both its popularity and its complexity as the week went on. First, it was just “Grandma Cheryl” leading, but by mid-week, there were more children leading from the front of the room than were remaining by their seats. When I mentioned that we were going to invite the entire congregation to join us in the getting down, most of the children were positively gleeful, (not counting the few in our older group who were not going to get down no matter what anyone said or did, and that’s ok – I told them that they surely would be represented in the congregation as well). After coming together with music, the storytelling began. We spent the first three days reading the story of the Lorax, with changing scenery in the room. The first day, our trufflula forest was lush and plentiful, with Barbaloots, Humming Fish, and Swammee Swans a plenty. On day 2, the Thneed Factory went up… (and John Eyler and Kitty Williams designed the most wonderful thneeed factory for us!) Well, I couldn’t even get the story out before the children were loudly informing me that some of our Truffula trees and Barbaloots were gone and that it was because there weren’t enough Truffula fruits for them to eat and that I really shouldn’t be wearing my fuzzy pink thneed coat because it was made out of the cut down truffula trees and really what was I thinking?!
By day 3, the smog had moved in and the Swammee Swans were gone and the pond was full of gluppety glup and the Humming Fish couldn’t sing… and all of the Trufflula trees had been turned into stumps – and the children were not happy AT ALL and they let me know exactly what was wrong with our picture. But… then we got to the end of the story and at the end of the story, the little boy in the book is given the last Truffula tree seed. I was halfway through asking them what they thought happened next, but was interrupted by an important idea from one of our 2nd graders… she said: “There should be a second Lorax book, because the boy planted the seed and the trees and the Barbaloots and the Lorax and everybody comes back.” (She was soon informed by one of the 5th graders that that couldn’t happen because Dr. Seuss was dead- and that’s working with children in a nutshell). I suggested that we could write that book and asked them how it would end? It was obvious and unanimous- of course he planted the seed and took care of it (and one of our kindergarteners let us know in painstaking detail how that was done and it involved water, sun, and soil – but not dirt, never dirt, soil only). I asked – did they then make more thneeds because, as the story says, they are what everyone needs? “No!!” That was an absolutely ludicrous suggestion – they were adamant that what we need are trees, not thneeds. It was that simple to them all – trees, not thneeds.
How I wish it really was that simple. When I think about our vanishing Eden, or read articles about the clock that is quickly running out before it’s too late for us to rectify humanity’s “thneed greed” that is pervasive and destructive, I despair and honestly, get pretty scared. How I wish gathering humanity in a room, handing them some chimes, and having them sing Mr. Rogers’ prayer song for trees was enough.
It’s not, really, but it was enough for me this week. It was enough for me because I found what I always find when spending time with children – purpose and hope. They are the reason that we can’t give up, and why we won’t give up, and they wouldn’t let us anyway. On Thursday morning, when the Truffula trees had started to grow back (because of course we planted that seed), we talked about kids who gave me hope, kids who really did plant a seed. Kids like 12 year old Adeline Tiffanie Swanana, who, after learning that mangroves were key to preventing the damage done by flooding, she dedicated herself to mangrove conservation through the development of a community of young people. Called Sahabat Alam, which means “Friends of Nature,” the group Adeline started has grown to contain over 1,700 members throughout Indonesia. We talked about Dylan Mahalingam, who founded websites such as Green Your Lives, Coral Crisis, and Reefs in Peril that aim to raise awareness on the importance of caring for endangered species and coral reefs and about 11 year old Kelvin Doe who, with almost no training and very few resources, has been recycling electronic parts he finds in the trash in his town in Sierra Leone to build generators, batteries, and radios…and bout 9-year-old Katie Stagliano, who brought a tiny cabbage seedling home from school as part of the Bonnie Plants Third Grade Cabbage Program. As she cared for her cabbage, it grew to 40 pounds. Katie donated her cabbage to a soup kitchen where it helped to feed more than 275 people. Moved by the experience of seeing how many people could benefit from the donation of fresh produce to soup kitchens, Katie decided to start vegetable gardens and donate the harvest to help feed people in need.
… and the “Climate Kids” who are suing the United States government for the right to a stable climate. These kids around the world were learning and growing just like they were, and they are just a small sampling of kids who, just like ours, are giving this world hope and purpose and inspiration.
After our morning gathering, the children headed out with their guides to 6 rotation stops. I was at the “Spirituality Stop.” Not only did I get to hang out with Cheryl Poe and Art Crummer for a few hours each day (which, I highly recommend you do should the opportunity present itself as they are 2 incredibly fun, smart, and musically gifted people), but I also got to share a short sacred scripture each day and hear the kid’s ideas about them. They shared some of those readings with you this morning. Their ideas were some of my favorite moments of the week. When I asked them what the writer meant when they wrote about God wanting swarms of living creatures in the ocean, one said “that means we have to keep them safe by keeping the ocean clean for them.” The sea monsters mentioned in Genesis, they concluded were octopus, sharks, and one-eyed squid. When I asked what the animals and plants could teach us, one said: “to only take what we need and to not pollute the earth” and another added “yeah, they don’t make a mess like we do.” When I suggested that trees didn’t actually have hands to clap, I was quickly corrected: “Of course they do, they have leaves that rustle in the wind and we can hear them.” For us grown-ups, it’s sometimes difficult to see the world outside of our human context, for our imagination to take hold, but for children, the interconnectedness of life is obvious and real.
A dictionary definition of “spirit” is “an animating or vital principle held to give life to physical organisms.” Author Jason Garder writes, “most might agree to root spirit in life – the teeming soil, the growing trees, the depth of the eyes. They might also extend this notion beyond what we recognize as alive to include everything: wind, water, even geological formations. Whether linked to religious beliefs about God…or to cultivating awareness as in Buddhism, here, spirit recognizes the world as sacred, and creates our responsibility to treat it with love, to consider it invaluable beyond its relation to people…Throughout human history, many understood this spiritual necessity. For most indigenous cultures, the natural world was their first and foremost teacher. Human life and nonhuman life were often indistinguishable. This spiritual connection is an ethical mandate to continue, even in the face of realistic despair, to work for good and beauty. Children have not lost that spiritual connection, it’s still simple, clear, and magical. Of course we need trees and they can clap their hands in joy. And in every conversation we had together, the children spoke about our responsibility: we need to keep the animals safe, we need to not litter and pick up trash, we need to plant the seeds and care for them. They understand the partnership of creation, they see the world and all living beings and know that we are connected, that each is important, and that we are responsible for care-taking and safe-keeping.
At the end of each day, once we had all gathered back together, I asked the children to teach me what they learned that day. As I was in my rotation station, I didn’t get to experience the special guests or science lab or special snacks… and they were always full of information.
They told me all about Uncle Mike’s Lorax ears and what it meant to “repurpose things.” They told me about The Florida Aquifer Project and the experiment they did that showed how pollution gets into our aquifers, about all of the different tree leaf rubbings they made with the Alachua Conservation Trust, about the invading (their word for invasive) air potato plants and these cool beetles that they will send to your house to eat them – and how they showed them the beetles and let them crawl on them! Finally, on Friday, I heard them talk about Family Promise. Our children know a lot about homelessness and they had a lot to share about different faces they see and signs that they read, stories of kindnesses done, about seeing people with kids, and people who are kids, and people with pets who are experiencing homelessness. Lisa and Dawn invited the children to make care packages that they could take with them and give to someone that might be in need. These packages contained items including food, water, band-aids, deodorant, chap stick, toothbrushes, other toiletries, and notes from our children. Each child was invited to write a message on a heart shaped note, and place it in their bags. This is a sampling of some of those notes that I had the privilege to read: “I hope you find a home soon.” “Dear people in need, I packed a bag of toiletries and food, I hope you enjoy them.” “Dear whoever gets this, I really hope it helps.” “I know how it feels not to have a home, I had to live in a hospital for 28 days, hope you get a home.” “You are cared for.” “I love you.” “Don’t give up hope.” It turns out that our children don’t only understand our connection to the plants and animals of creation, but to other human lives as well. They have a true and genuine sense of empathy. It’s right there in their notes, but also evident in the way that they treat each other.
25 kids bring 25 personalities, sets of needs, strengths and challenges each day, but I never heard an unkind word. I never saw a child dismissed or teased because they may approach the situation or task differently. When one child was sharing an idea and another began to speak over them, all I had to do was remind them that we respect our friends ideas and sharing. Chimes were swapped, blue seed scarves traded for red, turns were taken, peer leaders were followed, thank you’s were said – all because our children understand care and empathy – they know without knowing that they are connected to each other – so simple, and so profound.
I treasured last week, because it gave me quality time with the children of UCG that I don’t get during the academic year. Thank you to everyone who gave of their time and their hearts to join us last week. Our children are remarkable, and they have so much to teach us – About true simplicity and joy, about welcoming others in a way that lets everyone experience the day in their own way, about sharing ideas and listening to our friends share theirs, too, about leading as a team, about care and empathy, about our spiritual connection to the living world, and of course, about getting down. I will still get scared about the state of our earth’s spirit, and still despair sometimes, but today I am simply full of gratitude for these, our children of hope and purpose.
Backpack Blessing
Holy one of love and care, we bless these children and youth as they commit themselves to a new year of study and learning. Give them strength to do their best and persistence to keep trying, and help them remember that practicing kindness and compassion is also part of a day’s work.
We ask your blessing on these backpacks and all that they carry, those items both visible and invisible. May they rest upon shoulders that leave the loving arms of home each day and that return home again – each day safe and whole.
May these blessed children and youth always remember that, while we are happy to celebrate their successes, their worth to us will never be based on a grade or a test score, and that they will always find acceptance, welcome, and help when they need it – here in their church family. Here, they are loved – no matter what.
We also send our gratitude and blessings to teachers, administrators, and school staff. May they know that their call to teaching and learning is sacred and valued through the kindness and hard work of their students, students’ families, and those who govern.
God of life and learning, go with us into our new adventures, keep us safe, and be with us as we grow. Amen.
