I Am Your Child, God

This beautiful collection of prayers, collected by Marion Wright Edelman and illustrated by Brian Collier contains prayers for younger children, for older children, those for struggle and strength, for special occasions and traditional prayers. Edelman says in the preface that the prayers are "for children who need stronger inner anchors and spiritual grounding in our world in which ties to family, community and the sacred are becoming increasingly frayed."

It seems to me that several of the prayers in the younger children's section would be good for parents and children to learn in the time at night when prayers draw them together. Here is one:
"Thank you, Lord
Forgive me, Lord
Help me, Lord
Save me, Lord."

Edelman states that "these prayers are just a beginning of what I hope will become a lifelong conversation between children and God."

The traditional prayers containing several selections from the Psalms (praying through the psalms) The Lord's Prayer, and Assisi's Prayer For Peace.

Again, anothere beautiful book for children with a glimpse of God.

I Can Make a Difference

Another book I used in my presentation Sunday was Marion Wright Edelman's I Can Make a Difference, A Treasury to Inspire Our Children. It is fairly new, published in 2005. Written by the founder and head of the Children's Defense Fund and illustrated by Barry Moser, it is a gorgeous book.

Built on such principles as: I can make a difference by loving myself and others as God loves us ...by treating others respectfully and fairly...by being courageous...by caring and serving...by persevering and not giving up...by being grateful for the gift and wonders of life...by being compassionate and kind, etc., the book has for each principle, some quotations on the subject, a beautiful illustration fitting the topic, short stories from many cultures and excerpts from poetry on the topic.

I did the one on being grateful for the gift and wonders of life which is illustrated with a portrait of Albert Schweitzer and this quote from him, "The greatest thing is to give thanks for everything. He who has learned this knows what it means to live." With an excerpt from "Leaves of Grass" and a Zen story from Japan extolling the beauties of the moon, the chapter ends with the entire poem by James Weldon Johnson "The Creation." As I looked at this book, I could see at least two weeks' worth of morning announcements using the quotes and a few ideas.

Marion W. Edelman is one of my heros these days. Her CDF is a national voice for children NOT funded by the government. Other books she has written include a treasury of poetry for children entitled I Am Your Child, God. Illustrated by Brian Collier, it is another beautiful book. I will review that one tomorrow. Her other books are Guide My Feet and The Measure of Our Success. They are good books for teachers and parents on the rearing and teaching of children. Her memoir is Lanterns.