Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76Plough Quarterly • Winter 2015 15 child who somehow belonged to everyone. People came from all over the neighbor- hood and beyond: construction workers, her siblings’ teachers and classmates, the county executive, the local sheriff, and others from the law enforcement community. When the earth was shoveled by hand into her little grave, these friends and neighbors all wanted to take a turn, in an unforgettable gesture of reverence. It was remarkable how in such a short time this little girl had touched and influ- enced the lives of so many people. My granddaughter has not been forgotten. She is like a ray of light from heaven that con- tinues to work in people and change their lives. My wife and I still thank God that he gave her to our family, and to everyone else she met. There are many others like Stephanie. To me, every child is part of God’s plan, and he does not make mistakes. When a child is disabled, her life takes on special significance. Whenever we encounter such children, we need to pay attention. They have amazing things to teach us about uncondi- tional trust and love. At a time when people are often assessed in terms of their worth, intelligence, or attrac- tiveness, there are many who are not wanted or appreciated. But if we truly love children, we will welcome them all. Jesus says, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name wel- comes me.” As a teenager I was privileged several times to meet Dorothy Day, the legendary pacifist who founded the Catholic Worker, and to par- ticipate in some thought-provoking discussions. In her bohemian days, Dorothy had had an abortion, but several years later gave birth to her daughter Tamar, and was moved to write, “Even the most hardened, the most irreverent, is awed by the stupendous fact of creation. No matter how cynically or casually the worldly may treat the birth of a child, it remains spiritually and ­ physically a tremendous event.”5 Tamar’s birth changed her mother’s life, and indeed, every child has such transformative power. This is just as true of a stillborn baby, or a child who dies young. Whether or not we believe in a loving God, we can all show love and respect toward the chil- dren in our care. This will in turn awaken their own inborn sense of reverence – both for themselves as unique individuals, and for others, just as precious and distinctive. Only then will they truly understand their purpose and responsibil- ity in the world.  1 Herman Hesse, Vivos Voco, March 1919, as quoted in Eberhard Arnold, Salt and Light (Plough, 1997), 48. 2 Diane Levin, Beyond Remote-Controlled Childhood: Teaching Young Children in the Media Age (NAEYC, 2013), 16, 37. 3 Eberhard Arnold, Children’s Education in Community (Plough, 1976), 13–14. 4 Gordon, Mary, Roots of Empathy: Changing the World, Child by Child (Thomas Allen, 2005), 5–6. 5 Dorothy Day, Dorothy Day: Meditations, comp. Stanley Vish- newski (Newman, 1970), 10. Konstantin Makovsky, detail, Portrait of the Boy Every child is part of God’s plan, and he does not make mistakes. From WikiArt (public domain)