My Grandfather’s Cradle

Over 150 years ago, a new mother named Emma Wenger laid her first baby in the cradle pictured here. She rocked him, picked him up when he cried, and laid him gently down after he nursed. Over the next 25 years, she gave birth to 12 more children. All but one of them lived into adulthood, and all of them slept in this cradle.

One of these babies was my grandfather Edward. When I was a little girl of six, Grandpa gave me this old cradle as a Christmas present. He told me how he and his siblings had all slept in it. At the time, I didn’t appreciate the history behind the gift, but it was a wonderful gift for a little girl! For many years, my dolls cuddled together in the old cradle as I rocked them all to sleep.

In time, I became a mother, and, yes, I laid my own babies snuggly within the cradle’s embrace and gently rocked them to sleep. More time passed. My babies outgrew the cradle. In fact, they grew up and became mothers themselves — with their own babies in their own homes. And when they came to visit us, their babies slept in the old cradle, just as their mothers had. The family tradition continued.

This cradle has been in my home for many years, but it isn’t truly mine. I am simply the one who has had the privilege of holding it for a time. I am a steward and responsible for its care, but not an owner, possessing it forever. And now the time has come to release it, to pass it on to the next generation to use it and care for it.

As I look around in my home and beyond my home, I realize I am simply a steward, a care-giver, of everything around me. Including our earth itself! Even if my name is on a piece of paper as owner, I am simply a steward of this land. I am responsible for its care now, but in time, others will care for it. In this season of harvest, I want to be a wise and generous steward of my vegetable garden. I will share its produce as much as I can.

When we accept that we are not owners but stewards of the things we value, we may cherish and care for them even more deeply. At the same time, we can also hold them more lightly. We can hold them with hands open to share, not with hands clutched tightly to ourselves. What I cherish, whether it is my cradle or the planet itself, will be passed on to others. To love our planet wisely is to care for it so that future generations will have a healthy environment in which to raise their babies. To love our planet well is to share its gifts generously with all.

When I understand myself to be a steward of what I hold, I often feel a deep and profound gratitude for the privilege. I am grateful for the privilege of living with the antique cradle. When I rocked my babies in the cradle, I felt as though great-grandmother Emma was by my side, and I was grateful. I am also grateful for the privilege of passing it on.

When I understand myself to be a steward of the earth itself, holding it for others, I see its wonders and gifts with great gratitude. I deepen my commitment to caring for it and my desire to share it.

“All, all is gift. Give it away, give it away” wrote Daniel Berrigan. Can we experience all that we have as something we hold for a time and then, overflowing with gratitude, “give it away”? That is my hope.