166. When the Warrior Has Gone Home
(For Timothy T’sosie, a pureblood Navajo warrior, received on October 25, 2023)
When the warrior has gone home
When his final fight is through
When we lay his body earthward,
When his face we cannot view
Let no painful lamentation
Keep his spirit from release
For his soul has flown far skyward
And his heart has found God’s peace
Although we are left alone
When the warrior has gone home
When the warrior has gone home
And the trifles of our day
Bid us to forget our brother
As we rush in selfish ways
May we sometimes, stop, and ponder
How he taught us by his life
That the Savior knows our sorrows
And can cure all ills and strife
Even though we feel alone
When the warrior has gone home
When the warrior has gone home
He has left us with his cheer
With his warmth, and care, and wisdom
For his spirit lingers near
He will hunt with noble warriors
For whom clouds are now their steeds
Seeking those who need Christ’s healing
They bring balm in time of need
And we are not alone
When the warrior has gone home
(c) servingjesuspoetry.com [Unlimited non-commercial usage allowed.]
When his final fight is through
When we lay his body earthward,
When his face we cannot view
Let no painful lamentation
Keep his spirit from release
For his soul has flown far skyward
And his heart has found God’s peace
Although we are left alone
When the warrior has gone home
When the warrior has gone home
And the trifles of our day
Bid us to forget our brother
As we rush in selfish ways
May we sometimes, stop, and ponder
How he taught us by his life
That the Savior knows our sorrows
And can cure all ills and strife
Even though we feel alone
When the warrior has gone home
When the warrior has gone home
He has left us with his cheer
With his warmth, and care, and wisdom
For his spirit lingers near
He will hunt with noble warriors
For whom clouds are now their steeds
Seeking those who need Christ’s healing
They bring balm in time of need
And we are not alone
When the warrior has gone home
(c) servingjesuspoetry.com [Unlimited non-commercial usage allowed.]
Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine, 435-36—“Hence, when messengers are sent to minister to the inhabitants of this earth, they are not strangers, but from the ranks of our kindred, friends, and fellow-beings and fellow-servants…. In like manner our fathers and mothers, brothers, sisters and friends who have passed away from this earth, having been faithful, and worthy to enjoy these rights and privileges, may have a mission given them to visit their relatives and friends upon the earth again, bringing from the divine Presence messages of love, of warning, or reproof and instruction, to those whom they had learned to love in the flesh.”
BACKGROUND AND TRIGGER:
Today, a Celebration of Life service was held for Timothy T'sosie at the Meadows Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Bakersfield, California. Memorable, and fervent, remembrances of this devoted husband, father, grandfather, friend, and fellow-Saint were shared; prayers were offered; and songs of faith were sung--homage to a man of uncommon talent and love was rendered.
However, as one of Tim's friends and Elder's Quorum brethren and as a modest student of the traditions, customs, and history of the Navajo Tribe, I felt that there was a missing element of recognition and praise--Tim's ancestral heritage as a full-blooded member of the Navajo Nation--The People. Tim spoke with great passion of his Navajo upbringing (prior to his blessed entry into the Church's fostering program--his adoptive parents attending the services and sharing their praise and gratitude for his years with them); he publicly praised his ancestors, particularly his grandfather; he often expressed humble yet intense gratitude for the support of the Nation; and he acknowledged his blessing as recipient of choice gifts and powers due to his background.
I viewed Tim as a warrior, who fulfilled the ancestral calling of his people in ways suited for our times--for he fought against prejudice; against ignorance; against unchristian criticism; and against injustice. Pondering his heritage, I asked the Lord if He had a message for me to share about Tim's fight against evil--now continuing in the World of Spirits. I had previously made a sincere petition for such guidance but previously felt a total stupor of thought until this morning, only two hours before I had to leave for the funeral, at which time the phrase "When the warrior has gone home" forced me to my keyboard. I told the Lord: "If Thou hast anything Thou would'st have me say, please speak now, I pray, for, of myself 'I've got nothing but a title'". This poem followed in 30 minutes with swift refinements--God's grace. Again, any good I have done, anything of merit I might have recorded, and any service of any value I might have rendered others has been God's blessing to me. I am reminded of Mosiah 23:10--"Nevertheless, after much tribulation, the Lord did hear my cries, and did answer my prayers, and has made me an instrument in his hands." Can there be a greater blessing than to be an instrument in God's hands?
BACKGROUND AND TRIGGER:
Today, a Celebration of Life service was held for Timothy T'sosie at the Meadows Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Bakersfield, California. Memorable, and fervent, remembrances of this devoted husband, father, grandfather, friend, and fellow-Saint were shared; prayers were offered; and songs of faith were sung--homage to a man of uncommon talent and love was rendered.
However, as one of Tim's friends and Elder's Quorum brethren and as a modest student of the traditions, customs, and history of the Navajo Tribe, I felt that there was a missing element of recognition and praise--Tim's ancestral heritage as a full-blooded member of the Navajo Nation--The People. Tim spoke with great passion of his Navajo upbringing (prior to his blessed entry into the Church's fostering program--his adoptive parents attending the services and sharing their praise and gratitude for his years with them); he publicly praised his ancestors, particularly his grandfather; he often expressed humble yet intense gratitude for the support of the Nation; and he acknowledged his blessing as recipient of choice gifts and powers due to his background.
I viewed Tim as a warrior, who fulfilled the ancestral calling of his people in ways suited for our times--for he fought against prejudice; against ignorance; against unchristian criticism; and against injustice. Pondering his heritage, I asked the Lord if He had a message for me to share about Tim's fight against evil--now continuing in the World of Spirits. I had previously made a sincere petition for such guidance but previously felt a total stupor of thought until this morning, only two hours before I had to leave for the funeral, at which time the phrase "When the warrior has gone home" forced me to my keyboard. I told the Lord: "If Thou hast anything Thou would'st have me say, please speak now, I pray, for, of myself 'I've got nothing but a title'". This poem followed in 30 minutes with swift refinements--God's grace. Again, any good I have done, anything of merit I might have recorded, and any service of any value I might have rendered others has been God's blessing to me. I am reminded of Mosiah 23:10--"Nevertheless, after much tribulation, the Lord did hear my cries, and did answer my prayers, and has made me an instrument in his hands." Can there be a greater blessing than to be an instrument in God's hands?