Wandering Along the Path: Right Speech

My friend and I took a walk this morning and, as she is in a meditation class, she asked me why many prayers begin with "May".  May you be free from suffering and the causes of suffering, for example.  I hadn't really thought about it, though I acknowledged that my prayers begin with "May".  May my daughter be saved.  May her MRI be clear.  May the unborn baby be healthy.  I told my friend that I believe, first of all, it gets the ego "I" out of the way, and as I'm not asking a favor of some entity outside my self for rescue, it keeps the universe open.  Many amazing, contradictory things happen that are surprising or illogical, so it keeps "don't know" foremost and hope alive.  "May" also addresses the interconnectedness of all beings, and how the butterfly in China may cause an outcome on the other side of the world.  The universe is infinitely complex, and every situation is unique as well as familiar.  We are throwing out to the unknowable our wish and that thought becomes a part of everything.  Not really owned by us, and hopefully embraced by all beings.