Thanksgiving Prayer for all the Children

[babylonsister]

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/11/26/17420/304

Thanksgiving Prayer for all the Children
By John Friedrich

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Among the many reasons I became an early supporter of Barack Obama was what I heard this fellow father saying about what is at stake for all of our children. Words like, "I'm running for the presidency of the United States of America so that together we can do the hard work to seek a new dawn of peace and prosperity for our children, and for the children of the world."

Imagine, for a moment, if the policies of the United States were designed to do just this. What if instead of worrying about whether policies are coming from the illusory right, left or "center" (wherever and whatever that is!), we simply adopted an approach centered on the well-being of every child on the planet.

What would a child-centered approach look like? Topping my list, the killing of any child in war would be seen as the unacceptable outrage that it is. Aerial bombardment of wedding parties in Afghanistan and villages in Iraq would cease immediately.

We would lead the world in helping every child to get the healthy food, water, medicine, and education they need to survive and thrive. Such investments in friendship and compassion -- for just a fraction of our bloated military and war budgets -- would win back the hearts and minds of people everywhere, and marginalize terrorists more than any bomb-based, enemy-producing strategy ever will.

A child-centered approach would recognize that the we must act now to protect and restore Earth and its life support systems that we are borrowing from our children. Putting children first in the United States would result in providing high quality health care, early childhood education, and child care to every child, and paid time off for mothers and fathers to tend to their new-borns (the U.S. is one of just four countries in the world without a paid maternity leave program.)

When we sit down to give thanks before our Thanksgiving feast, hands joined with Rosie and her adoring grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, we will give thanks for the seeds hope and possibility for deep change that have been planted in hearts from sea to shining sea. We will pray that we the people of the United States will do unto the children of others, as we would have their parents do unto our children. We will pray that someday soon we might be joined hand in hand with our human family, giving thanks that we came together at last to create a new dawn of peace and prosperity for our children, and for the children of the world.

[fortyfeetunder]

1. Two hands in prayer for the kids.

I think there is fear of child-centric governance because of the perception of coddling or spoiling. But we are merely investing in our future, and providing a nurturing environment to grow and learn.