“May I see the goodness of your creation as you see it” is how I begin my morning prayer routine. I pray, in the words of Ceisiwr Serith, “May I not miss beauty, may I not miss wonder, may I not miss joy…”*

I dreamed I was at an artist’s reception in a gallery. The only painting in the room covered an entire wall and was yet to be unveiled. The crowd sipped wine and carried on hushed conversations. Finally the artist came in and revealed her masterpiece with great excitement, and it was breathtaking. We didn’t have much time to take it in before she handed us each a brush or a marker and urged us toward the painting. People autographed it and wrote well-wishes as if it were a cast or a birthday card. The calligraphy brush she gave me was difficult to wield. All I could manage was a crude ‘I ❤ U,’ which I practiced over and over until the delicate brush was ruined.

We returned the brushes and markers and stepped back to look. The painting was effectively destroyed, obscured by our unintelligible scribbles.

I take this as an obvious metaphor for God’s creation, on which we know we have left our mark, but it can also symbolize the way we conduct our God-given lives on a smaller scale. Why did the Creator give us such power? What did the Creator expect? Does she still, as in the book of Genesis, declare that it is good? All of it?

A recent concept in Western consciousness is that we all have the power to be co-creators. What we need to consciously develop to go along with that power is wisdom and heart. We need to learn to use our power gently, and with discernment.

Further along in my daily prayer, I profess faith that everything is in divine order — that the power of life, fueled by love, is greater than (and actually contains) the power of entropy. The Creator’s love contains and infuses all of this, holds it all together, and as Paul said in his letter to the Corinthians, “works all things together for good.”

Let’s not be afraid to use the co-creative power we’ve been given. As Tom Brown famously tells his Tracker School students, “Do something, even if it’s wrong.” The Creator can and will ultimately make beauty and goodness out of the messes we’re bound to make, but we would be naive to expect the process to be painless — for ourselves or for everyone with whom we share this magnificent canvas. So let’s practice our power with humility, with respect for the mystery, and with loving care.

* Ceisiwr Serith, Book of Pagan Prayer, Weiser Books, 2018.