Prayers for Courage and Bravery
This week I was challenged to write some prayers, the sort that one goes to for comfort and strength when times are hard. This is certainly something I need, something many can benefit from, and I’d be happy to have more around when I need them.
I thought a bit about if there were particular Wanderers to focus on, but it was clear that one is not broadly better than any other for this. They’ve all been on journeys into the unknown, the sort of situation where courage is important; that experience makes them who they are, in a real way. Any could be called to, all can help, it’s more a matter of who feels closest to a particular circumstance.
Still, one that jumped out the most for me as an obvious choice was the Writer-in-Flames
Writer-in-Flames, ever-warm and ever-bright, build a fire in my heart. Help me to face what I fear, and write the story of how I conquered it. Let me feel your blazing plumage as my own, as I find the ways that this experience can transform me for the better.
Another that came to mind for me though is the Singer-in-Silence. I have a particular personal reiationship with them, one that’s a bit different from how many folks think of divine relationships. Many times I experience the Singer as particularly young, still maturing, still figuring a lot of things out in the world. And by the same token, that’s a mindset I find valuable and important for myself. So, many of my experiences with the Singer have been a sort of childhood friendship, us talking and exploring and even playing together. And sometimes, when things are scary, it helps to just know someone is there alongside you.
Singer-in-Silence, thank you for being here with me. Right now in the middle of these hard times, I remember how you found your way along the rivers, how you ran through the cold after the sun, and how you’re always nearby when I need someone to talk to. Please, hold my paw and help me hear you, as we walk into the unknown and find our way forward together.
Finally, there’s a different, less-divine source of strength and courage that I’ve been trying to think more of lately: Ancestors. One thing that really jumps out to me whenever I think about ancestors is how they were, more than anything else, people. As much as my gods are very person-involved, it’s hard to imagine them going through all the day-to-day that other embodied folk like me do. And even if some of my challenges are different from the ones faced by those who went before, many of the feelings are the same, and I believe their nature now as ancestors helps them share that, as well as giving them compassion even for things that are newer to the world than they are.
You who make me who I am, you who trod the path before me, watch over me now in these times of anxiety. Ancestors of fire, thank you for the lights you shine ahead of me, that I may follow it. Help me feel your warmth around me. Ancestors of water, thank you for the flow that supports my life. Help me drink of your experience. All you folk, who’ve been just as scared as I am now, help me remember that there is more to life than this, as I remember all you’ve done, and still do, for me.
The tricky part for me, of course, is remembering these specifics are there, when I’m in the midst of something difficult. But that’s why I’m glad to be reminded of these even when things are not so hard for me, so that those connections can become a natural and easy part of my life.