A Legend of Creation

Rufus Jones in his book, New Eyes For Invisibles, tells of an old legend of Creation.  There are many such legends about Creation.  The ancient Babylonians had one called “The Enuma Elish.” The Greeks had one and the Navajo, too.  Almost every culture had their own story of how all things began.  Rufus Jones added this one to an already long list of Creation legends:

“There is an old legend of Creation which tells how all the tiny seeds of life came up before God and He let them choose what they would like to be.  One wanted fins so that he could swim the seas.  Most of the surface of the world was water and he wanted to be in it.  Another one wanted wings, for there was even more air than water and he wanted to be in the air.  A third wanted a powerful mouth and swift feet so that he could catch and eat plenty of food.  God made him a lion.  One tiny seed came near being overlooked, he was so quiet.  ‘Well, little fellow,’ God said, ‘what would you like to be?’  ‘I don’t want fins,’ this tiny seed said, ‘And I don’t want wings, nor crushing weapons in my mouth, like the lion.  Just let me be made in your image.  Then I can make the things I need for the water and the air and the earth.’  So God made man in His own image.”

“So God made man in His own image,” but man isn’t quite sure that is what or who he  really wants to be.  He is still trying to decide if he would prefer to have fins, wings, or a powerful mouth, or maybe even all three.  Sometimes he isn’t satisfied with just being made in the image of God—he would much rather be God!  

There are so many different kinds of iris--doesn't that tell us
something?