I woke with a start

I woke with a start.
Was that a bump?
It was pitch dark.
Who is that there?
Had to check up.
Put my robe on.
Quiet down the stair.
Open the back door.
Hair stands on end.
Am grabbed from behind.
What is going on?
Whisked off my feet.
Can't even call out.
Put into a boat.
And Charon he says:
"Coin in my hand."
Then opens my mouth.
I panic and squirm.
A tooth he extracts.
My gold capped one.
He examines it well.
And loosens his grip.
I'm over the side.
In the River Styx.
The river of death.
Swim to the shore.
Run back home fast.
In through the door.
Climb up the stairs.
Get into my bed.
Am asleep in a sec.
Dead to the world!
Wake soaked in sweat.
That wasn't a dream.
I have cheated death.
Just for a bit!


(Image by Cecil Keating found on cover of Penguin Classics book  "Satirical Sketches" by Lucian. 1961)


This poem written almost exactly ten years ago to the day was one of the first poems I ever posted. The coin in the mouth (or my gold tooth) was the tradition to pay the mythical ferryman for the journey across the River Styx to Hades in ancient Greek tradition.

A good example

Atalanta was a girl in ancient Greece who had a miserable childhood with a father that wanted a son, was abandoned by him and brought up by bears, fought centaurs and boars and chose to excel at sport.

You would imagine that Atalanta would be pretty uncouth, as smelly as a bear and not the most desirable of girlfriends having been raised up this way; but not so. For some reason possibly to get hold of the franchise to exploit this maiden her father accepts her back and encourages her to the extent of laying down the rules for suitors to her hand. 

To win this hairy, smelly, uncouth maiden, suitors would have to beat her in a foot race. Losers she decides would indeed be that by losing their lives as some apparently did. However one young man Hippomenes with a great desire for Atalanta despite her odoriferous background wants to win her but sees how unlikely that is seeks Aphrodite’s help. She gives him three golden apples to tempt Atalanta with. He will  throw them down as they race to entice her to pick them up which is what you do if you have been raised by smelly bears, abandoned then reconciled with your very rich father who only wanted a son and now is being unbearably cruel to all suitors regardless of their looks or potential…or so the story goes.

They start running and clearly she is leading as of course she would be as he is toting three golden apples which must be very heavy. How he does this I can’t imagine as in ancient Greece competitors ran naked however whether he drops one or manages to throw it so she can see it despite her concentrating on her running, I don’t know; but my guess is that someone in the crowd of onlookers tells her what is going on and she glances round and despite her father being as rich as Midas; she chases after it and picks it up. So Hippomenes grabs the lead and slightly less encumbered with only two balls left sees her catching up again. So throws another gold ball possibly on a turn in the track so she goes chasing after the second gold ball heading in the opposite direction while he steams ahead again. This happens once more and she is the one that is now lumbered with balls and he wins the race and the hairy, smelly maiden for himself. Everybody rejoices and he marries Atalanta and even more unlikely stories are told about them later on.

So how about Hippomenes and Atalanta you ask? Well, getting a good look at him after the race she realizes that perhaps such a resourceful chap wouldn’t be a bad husband after all so they get wed but in their eagerness completely forget to thank the gods for their help by which nothing could happen in those days. Zeus and Aphrodite are furious but luckily recognizing the couples love for each other they are placed in a constellation in the sky for all time. If you believe all that you must be on drugs too! 

Note: This is not a good story for children. Not because the characters are running around naked with people watching them but because this event may have been the start of cheating at sport for gain, albeit abetted by those in control of the sports people’s lives. Does this sound familiar?

N.B. I published a version of this story several years ago but as the Olympic Games start this week I thought it could do with an airing.

Image found at www.en.wikipepdia.org

The guilty man

There still in my eyes
Are seeds sown by Morpheus
Now bathed with sunshine

In the cool shower
I hose myself down to wake
It's a fine morning

Stones in my heart gone
Troubles sprayed from the crevices
Who could ask for more?

I'm lying of course
That short squirt of refreshment
Is but so short lived

For I am still me
Reeling to the fiery pit
Past still holds my hand

Image found at www.murphyillustration.com

Sporting heroes are an inspiration

                                              Atalanta and Hippomenes in their race

Isn’t it curious that the two words Inspiration and Perspiration are so similar, yet the first one implies an inbuilt ability to conjure up a solution from some innate knowledge whereas the other merely shows that hard work is the only answer to achieve a goal?

Posting regularly we hear of muses abandoning fellow writers who seek more conducive brains to rest in, rather than having to do all the work themselves or at least prodding the writer to come up with something and then snuggling into their mushy heads once again.

Wasn’t it that girl Atalanta in ancient Greece who having suffered a miserable childhood with a father that wanted a son was abandoned and brought up by bears, fought centaurs and boars and chose to excel at sport and became a fine runner, equal in fact to any man?

You would imagine that Atalanta would be pretty uncouth, as smelly as a bear and not the most desirable of girlfriends having been brought up this way; but not so. For some reason possibly to get hold of the franchise to exploit this maiden her father accepts her back and encourages her athleticism to the extent of laying down the rules for suitors to her hand.

To win this hairy, smelly, uncouth, maiden over, suitors would have to beat her in a foot race. Losers she decides would indeed be that by losing their lives as some apparently did. However one young man Hippomenes with a great desire for Atalanta despite her odoriferous background wants to win her but sees how unlikely that is so seeks Aphrodite’s help. She gives him three golden apples to tempt Atalanta with. He will have to throw them down to entice her to pick them up which is what you do if you have been brought up by smelly bears, abandoned then reconciled with your very rich father who only wanted a son and now is being unbearably cruel to all suitors regardless of their looks or potential…or so the story goes.

So they start running and clearly she is faster as of course she would be as he is toting three golden apples which presumably are very heavy. How he does this I can’t imagine as in ancient Greece you ran naked however whether he drops one or manages to throw it so she can spy it despite her concentrating on her running, I don’t know; but my guess is that someone in the crowd of onlookers tells her what is going on and she glances round and despite her father being as rich as Midas; she chases after it and picks it up. Meanwhile Hippomenes grabs the lead and slightly less encumbered with only two balls left sees her catching up again. So throws another gold ball possibly on a corner of the track so she goes chasing after the second gold ball heading in the opposite direction while he steams ahead again. This happens once more and she is the one that is now lumbered with balls and he wins by a whisker and wins the hairy, smelly, grotty maiden for himself.

Everybody rejoices and he marries Atalanta and even more unlikely stories are told about them later on.

Note: This is not a good story for children. Not because the characters are running around naked with people watching them but because this event may have been the start of cheating at sport for gain, albeit abetted by those in control of the sports people’s lives. Does this sound familiar?

 

Now you will want to know where the inspiration for this story came. Australia has just announced that there is widespread corruption in sport. Hello? I thought we knew this all along. Recently the Australian ABC News reported:

An Australian Crime Commission investigation has found widespread drug use in Australian professional sport, with some athletes being given substances not yet approved for human use.

The year-long investigation says organized criminal networks have been involved in distributing the drugs to athletes and support staff, including doctors and coaches.
In at least one case an entire team is believed to have been doped. 

So how about Hippomenes and Atalanta you ask? Well, getting a good look at him after the race she realizes that perhaps such a resourceful chap wouldn’t be a bad husband after all so they get wed but in their eagerness to get to bed completely forget to thank the gods for their help by which nothing could happen in those days. Zeus and Aphrodite are furious but luckily recognizing the couples love for each other they are placed in a constellation in the sky for all time. If you believe all that you must be on drugs too!

A conversation with Io (No. 1)

I made a big mistake having a stopover in Athens on the way back to Australia after a holiday in the UK. Trouble was I had read the ads, saw the photos and marvelled at Greece’s ancient history. So I too wanted touch the past. Did I make a mistake! Perhaps I should have done that first at the start of the vacation. But I didn’t and with the wind rumpling my hair in the cold Attic wind staring at crumbling temples, listening to the prattling of the guides about the beliefs of the past as well as the boring tourists who I regretfully formed a part, just about drove me out of my mind. I was glad to board the plane home for the festive season with my family. Once in a while you have to splash out and I had invested in a business class round trip and that has spoilt me for any future travel abroad.

There was an empty seat by my side so I was pleased that I would not have the flicker of their screen all night as they watched some dumb movie while I was trying to sleep. Just as we were in the middle of the safety instructions a late passenger was escorted down the aisle. It was a rather disorganized young girl who tripped and stumbled her way along and then was directed to the window seat alongside me. She had virtually no hand luggage, just a large red leather handbag which presumably contained all she needed.

I nodded a hello, and settled back down again. She in her turn looked all around her, checked her seat controls and was about to recline her seat so I tried to dissuade her until after take off. She complied but grinned at me cheekily and said “So you are a Taurus too.” I nodded an agreement in puzzlement as the plane taxied out from the terminal.

“We’ve met before.” She said.

“We have?” I queried.

“You were looking at the temples weren’t you? I saw you at the Acropolis as well as Olympia.”

“Sorry, I never noticed you. Don’t you think the temple of Hera at Olympia was a little sad though, being so ruined, but at least it is there that they light the Olympic flame isn’t it? It is like a link with the past.”

“That bitch! They should have pulled the whole lot down.”

“Well that is what the gods were like, always fighting each other, luckily they doesn’t influence us anymore or at least I hope not.” I responded jokingly.

“That is what you think. Why do you think I am on this plane?”

At this point I thought I had better introduce myself. “I’m Robin, just going back home to Australia.” I held out my hand to shake hers. She looked a little doubtful but placed her hand in mine. I was electrified. What a fantastically beautiful hand it was. It fitted right into mine soft, warm and ridiculously sexy. I had never thought of hands as that sexy before. Pretty yes, but sexy?

I looked up into her eyes, they were smiling seductively. She clearly was thinking hard before she said anything else but then blurted out “Io” with a tiny shrug of her shoulders.

“From Iolanthe? Were your parents fond of Gilbert and Sullivan?”

“No, just Io.”

“Oh it’s a Greek name isn’t it? I am sorry I never though that you were Greek.”

“I am not, I am a Naiad.”

At this point, the stewardess came round with an offer of drinks. So while we were choosing our tipple, it suddenly dawned on me she was pulling my leg. I grinned back at her, quickly trying to remember my Greek mythology.

“Oh yes your Dad’s name was Inachus wasn’t it, can’t remember your mum’s name though.”

“Melia.”

“Was it? Well you’re Greek you should know.”

“I am not Greek!’ She was getting a bit worked up again. “I am Arcadian.”

“Yes, right. So, you’re going to Australia?”

“Is that where we are going?”

“How did you get on this plane without knowing where you are going?”

“I followed you. It is all finished back there.” She gestured behind us and I naturally assumed she meant Greece, the Euro and the financial crisis.

“I had to choose someone that could help me. So you’re it. You will help me won’t you?”

Her smile was so seductive, and at that point she placed a hand on my thigh and looked at me with pleading eyes. I was electrified. I can’t mention what else was happening to me.

With my last fragment of sanity I said “You probably don’t need me at all.”

“You’re right,” she said removing her hand, “But I thought it might be fun with a younger man.”

“Io,” I stuttered, “I am over seventy. I am not a younger man.”

“How old do you think I am then?’” She replied flicking her ten fingers up at me what appeared to be hundreds of times, finishing with just four on the right hand. “It will work out.”

I don’t know why, but I had an uneasy feeling about this, she must be about 3500 years old. No, I forgot those last four fingers, make it 3504.