Someone plants
Two tiny trees,
Each expecting
Warm summer storms.
Autumn arrives late.
Rivers recede.
Dust begins
Scattering seeds,
Hoping they'll
Inhabit exhausted soil,
Promising future shade.
Why I Like This Word
One of the reasons I love stewardship is that it quietly changes the question. Ownership asks, “What can I do with what’s mine?” Stewardship asks, “What has been entrusted to me?”
When you plant two tiny trees in exhausted soil, you are not acting like an owner. An owner would look at the dry rivers and the dust and walk away because the return on investment isn’t there. But a steward plants anyway. A steward thinks beyond today, beyond personal preference, and beyond convenience. This way of thinking reminds us that what we care for right now will eventually belong to someone else.
Whether we’re talking about a forest, a friendship, a classroom, or a community, stewardship asks us to leave it a little better than we found it, even if all we have to offer is future shade.
Stewardship
Definition:
The careful and responsible management of something entrusted to your care.
Example:
Stewardship isn’t about ownership. It’s about caring for something as though someone else will one day inherit it.
Etymology
The word steward comes from the Old English stigweard.
- stig = household or hall
- weard = guardian or keeper
A steward wasn’t the owner of an estate. A steward cared for it on someone else’s behalf. The responsibility wasn’t to consume it or profit from it, but to leave it in good condition for whoever came next.
Over time, the idea expanded far beyond a household. Today we talk about stewardship of:
- the environment
- public lands
- finances
- communities
- traditions
- relationships