"And How Are The Children?"

"And how are the children?"
Rev. Dr. Patrick T. O'Neill

Among the most accomplished and fabled tribes of Africa, no tribe was considered to have warriors more fearsome or more intelligent than the mighty Masai. It is perhaps surprising then to learn of the traditional greeting that passed between Masai warriors. "Kasserianingera," one would always say to another. It means: "And how are the children?"

It is still the traditional greeting among the Masai, acknowledging the high value that the Masai always place on their children's well-being. Even warriors with no children of their own would always give the traditional answer: "All the children are well," meaning, of course, that peace and safety prevail, that the priorities of protecting the young, the powerless, are in place, that the Masai society has not forgotten its reason for being, its proper functions and responsibilities. "All the children are well" means that life is good. It means that the daily struggle of existence, even among a poor people, does not preclude proper caring for its young.

This fable begs the question of the effect on our own consciousness if, in our culture, we took to greeting each other with this same daily question: "And how are the children?" One wonders if we heard that question and passed it along to each other a dozen times a day, would it begin to make a difference in the reality of how children are thought of or cared for in this country?

What if every adult among us; parent and non-parent alike, felt an equal weight for the daily care and protection of all the children in our county, in our state, in our country? Could we truly say, without hesitation, "The children are well, yes, the children are all well.”

What would it be like . . .if the President began every public appearance, by answering this very question, "And how are the children, Mr. President?" if every Governor of every state had to answer the same question at every press conference, "And how are the children, Governor, are they well?" Wouldn't it be interesting to hear their answers?

An excerpt from a speech by the Rev. Dr. Patrick T. O'Neill_First Parish Unitarian-Universalist Church, Farmingham, MA

Tomorrow
belongs to the people who
prepare for it today.

An African Proverb