Take Care

Jesus said, “Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven. What do you think? If a shepherd has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.
“If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” Matthew 18:10-20 

Take Care

For us, it was always about the children
on this day after American Thanksgiving
we never deny them a feast or celebration
but we remember how they were taken away.

For us, they are the dreams and the hope embodied
they learn at our hips at our very sides daily
when removed from our homes and our peoples
they were stripped of our language and visions.

For us, seeking out our wandering children
is a daily task and we take care of their waking
their sleeping and their dreaming as a gift
a fragile, hearty, great delight of our lives.

For us, we know the ancestors are watching them
you call them angels and we can understand that
for we know divine light and love abide here
in the hearts of these little ones we are given.