Ever since we moved to California, I’ve been seeking some sort of community for my son Adam, who, as many of you know, has Down syndrome. I haven’t had much luck.

Most of our neighbors are wild animals, and there’s no well-developed special-needs program among the bobcats and the bears I’ve met so far. Even nearby towns don’t have many activities for people with special needs.

It finally occurred to me that I wasn’t walking my talk in this area. I’ve been feeling like a defeated little critter, unable to access an existing program or structure that would meet my family’s needs. Instead, I need to start thinking like a Creator, and simply make what I want.

Each of us is both a small, vulnerable critter and a vast, powerful Creator. When we stop feeling victimized or abandoned and resolve to design and build stuff, we align our identity with our Creator-selves. Instead of persecuted critters, we become heroes on a quest. A difficult quest, to be sure, but that’s how it’s supposed to be.

I have no idea how to convene a community for Adam. I’m just beginning to imagine what it will look like. But that turns my brain into a guided missile. The more I accept the role of Creator, the more I’ll notice all sorts of people and ideas that might help me. Then my job is to try, fail, learn from my mistakes, and repeat, until my imagined goal begins to take shape in the physical world.

This month, I challenge you to stop feeling like a victimized critter, and beginning to think of yourself as the Creator of your heart’s desires. Stick to it, and you’ll soon see that whatever you’re trying to build outside is just a byproduct. The clear thought and hard work of aligning with your Creator self will empower you, fulfill you, and teach you what you truly are. And that, it turns out, was the real goal all along.