FFW: If I Were a God(dess)…

Example: Athena Zeus swallowed his lover Metis to prevent her from having offspring, but she already was pregnant with Athena. Metis gave birth to Athena and nurtured her inside Zeus until Zeus complained of headaches and called for Hephaestus to split open his head with his smithing tools. Athena burst forth from his forehead fully armed with weapons given by her mother. She famously wields the thunderbolt and the Aegis (a shield), which she and Zeus share exclusively. Athena is the goddess of warfare, civilization, wisdom, strength, strategy, crafts, justice and skill in Greek mythology. Although Athena was a goddess of war strategy, she disliked fighting without purpose and preferred to use wisdom to settle predicaments. The goddess only encouraged fighting for a reasonable cause or to resolve conflict. Athena is also a wise companion of heroes and so she is also the goddess of heroic endeavor. The Athenians built the Parthenon in Athens in her honor. Her symbols are the owl, olive tree, snake, armor, the Aegis (a shield), helmet, and spear.

Imagine you are a god(dess). What is your name? How did you come to be? (Who are your parents and how were you born and raised?) What do you control? What kind of temper do you have? How do you solve a problem? How do humans feel about you? What are your symbols? How are you similar to the god(dess) version of yourself?

Miss Yost’s Example I am the goddess known as Desiertha. When my father Zeus attempted to rescue my mother Persephone from Hades, there was a terrible battle between the two brothers. Only Persephone could calm them down by standing between them and declaring her want of peace. Hades walked away in anger, allowing Zeus to have his way with Persephone. Persephone wanted to keep me a secret, and so she kept me hidden in a dark part of the Underworld until I grew furious with neglect. Whenever I become upset, a dark cloud forms, causing a black and blue sky, symbolizing my bruised feelings, and the rain are my tears. My dad will sometimes throw down his lightening bolts to warn me that I need to calm down. I also control the wind to allow me to fly far away from situations that may set off my bad temper. I may defend myself against those who hurt my feelings piercing them with physical pain . If someone hugs me, though, I calm down immediately. The humans have built a temple called Desithon, located in a desert. They hope my powers will create helpful rainstorms. They are always worried, though, because they are not sure whether I will create rain from sadness or sandstorms from the wind that rushes me away. Since my mother is known to be the goddess of vegetation, lemon trees sprout from the soil I touch. My symbols are the raincloud, lemon, tornado, porcupine, and bear. I am similar to Desiertha because I can have a short temper and get defensive very easily. I believe a big “bear hug” from friends shows a sign of thoughtfulness and I find that very soothing. I really connect to the Eli Young Band’s song “When it Rains,” because the “skies of black and blue” is an awesome symbol of one’s hurt feelings.