Interesting Facts About Some of my Friends (Post 10)

Hello once again! After hearing out some of my other god and goddess friends, I have gathered up some interesting facts about them!

My Greek Comrades:

Artemis is the goddess of the hunt, and is symbolized by the moon.  She is the daughter of Zeus and Leto.  After her brother Apollo tricked her into killing a beloved friend, Orion, she placated him by creating a constellation of stars in the sky.

Ah, and Apollo (as previously mentioned) is her brother.  These two siblings are very protective of their mother, Leto.  In fact, at the age of four days old, Apollo slayed the mighty Python just to save her!  Like me, he is a lover of music, and he plays the lyre, which is made of turtle and is used to soothe one's rage.

The god of thievery and mischief is Hermes.  He's quite the trickster!  Why, one time, he switched all of Apollo's cows' feet!  Of course, Apollo was not too happy, so Hermes crafted the lyre that Apollo so dearly enjoys.

Dionysus is the god of religious ecstasy, wine, and theater.  His wine is fabulous! It's hands down the best in all of the realms.  Thanks to his mother, Semele, he is able to travel to earth and back.  How sweet is that?  Oh, and I found this to be quite disturbing, but he was born out of his father's thigh! 

Demeter is the goddess of agriculture and controls the harvesting and fertility of plants.  It's a shame what happened to her daughter.  You see, her daughter and her were happy as can be until Cupid came along and shot Hades with an arrow.  He fell in love with Persephone and now, Demeter only sees her four months out of the year!

My Egyptian Friends:

The all powerful Ra was the creator of everything, including mankind.  Over time, the humans became unappreciative of him, and began to mock him at his old age.  He was furious and created a ferocious lioness known as Sekhmet, but he soon felt bad for man and saved the human race before she murdered them all.

Isis is the goddess of magic, fertility, and life.  She stole Ra's secret name and gained all of the power over Egypt.  Her first husband was her brother, Osiris, but after his death, she became impregnated with Horus, who she later married. 

Osiris is the lord and judge of the Underworld, and the god of fertility and vegetation, which I guess is why his skin is green.  He looks like an alien!  (In the best possible way!)  After being chopped up into a bunch of pieces, Isis resurrected him, but after he died for the second time, he was forced to stay in the Underworld and never return to the world above.

Horus is the god of the sky, and the son of Osiris and Isis.  After his father's death, he married his own mom and had four kids...  And he cheated in a race one time, crafting a wooden ship and passing it off as stone!

Set is the god of storms, violence, and the desert.  He was so hungry for power, that he decided to kill his brother, Osiris, and dispersed his body parts across the entire world!  Talk about a dysfunctional family here...

My Chinese Friend:

Guan Yin is the goddess of mercy, and she is a kindhearted soul who helps everyone.  She carries willow branches which is a symbol of being able to bend but not break when helping others.  Guan Yin wasn't always a goddess, however.  She once was a human boy, and after generously giving up his eye to save his father, he was offered the opportunity to become the goddess of mercy.

A Cool Native American Bird:

One of the tricksters in Native America is Raven; he's quite the trouble-maker.  He is the creator of light and the stars, because he disguised himself as a very noisome and spoiled little baby.  He was also the first bird to fly out of Noah's Ark!

And Lastly, my Good Ol' Norse Buddies:

Why not start with Odin, the Allfather of the Norse gods.  He's the wisest of all and loves knowledge.  I'm not even kidding when I say that he's a bit crazy for it.  Not only did he hang upside down and starve himself for NINE DAYS STRAIGHT, but he even gave up one of his eyes just to gain more of it!

Thor is Odin's son, and he's the god of the sky, predominantly thunder.  His hammer, Mjölnir, was made of "uru" which is the rarest metal in Asgard, and it was forged by two dwarves: Sindri and Brokkr.  Once, the king of Frost Giants stole it, and refused to give it back unless he married me!  I refused to marry such an awful creature, and of course I would never do such a thing to Od!

His brother is Loki.  Well, technically he's the son of Frost Giants, but I just feel bad for the guy, you know?  With them being enemies of our race and all...  Oh, and not to mention the fact that his sons were transformed into a wolf and a snake.  And worst of all, the snake-son was killed by his own brother and his innards were used to tie up Loki for eternity! Ew!

Frigg is Odin's wife and the goddess of marriage and love.  She absolutely adored her son, Balder, and when she had reoccurring dreams of his death, she became incredibly worried. To make sure he would never die, she asked everything not to cause harm to her son.  Well, almost everything.  The one thing she didn't ask was mistletoe, and after telling an "innocent old woman" this, he was killed thanks to Loki.

Balder is god of light and peace, and because he's kind to everyone, he is loved by all- or so we thought.  Apparently, Loki couldn't stand him, and so when he found out the one thing that could kill Balder, he seized the opportunity and Balder was killed by his blind brother.

The Melancholy of My Marriage (Post 9)

It was a beautiful day; the birds were singing and the sky was bright.  When I had awaken, I was a bit taken aback to realize my husband was absent from our bed.  Being the god of the sun, I figured he had just waken up early, but as I walked around our home and garden, he was nowhere to be found.  I walked around Midguard inquiring every person I saw, but no one had seen him, and they kept persisting that he had died. I did not believe this, as my heart insisted that he was alive and well.  I knew he was a wanderer at heart, after all, this was not the first time he had disappeared; but he always returned and pleaded me for forgiveness.  It was an odd relationship we had.  We loved each other dearly, but we both had our fair share of adultery.  Anyway,  I went back to our home to fetch my falcon cloak and set off on my pursuit.  I prepared for my journey, and finally set off, soaring upward into the sky in search of my love.  It was tiring, and I passed over many lands.
 After the long, exhausting journey, I finally found Od, in some sea that was far south.  I was flying low, allowing the salty air and gentle breeze to keep me awake, when this horrid creature erupted from the water and startled me.  It floated there in the water, watching me.  As frightened as I was, I slowly came closer to him.  I stared into his eyes, which were a deep emerald green - just like Od's.  I shook the thought from my mind and was ready to continue my search, but my heart would not allow me to go.  The creature spoke, and his voice was the same melodic tone that I had fallen for.  He told me how he had wanted to go somewhere warmer, but on the way there, he was banished at sea and turned to the hideous monster. Regardless of his new appearance, I forgave him and remained by his side.  I could not revert him to the man he once was, but I still loved him, and he loved me.

Not long after, I left him ashore at the sea for a short while, and when I came back, his body was slain.  I ran to him and hugged his still-warm body, but he was gone.  I swore that I would avenge him, and kill whoever had committed this heinous crime.  When I found it was the other gods who had murdered him, she was enraged.  To placate her, they offered Od a place in Valhalla, despite the fact that he was not heroically killed in battle.

Resolution (Post 8)

After the death of her sea monster husband, Freya was utterly furious of those who assassinated him.  She was so upset that she threatened to kill each of them.  These deities felt horrible, and so they got together to come up with a solution.  Though they could not bring her love back to life, they wanted to honor him.  They did so by offering a memorial of Od in Valhalla, which is the highly honorable hall in Asgard that hosts those who have died heroically in battle, even though that was not his cause of death.  

In the end, an agreement was made, and Freya often went to visit his grave, never forgetting her true love.

Climax (Post 7)

After Freya finally found her husband, she was ecstatic.  However, when she discovered he was no longer the man she woke up to every morning, and was now a frightful sea monster, she was disappointed.  No matter, she did not let this ruin her obstinate feelings for him.  She stayed right by his side, loving him each and every waking moment.  Unfortunately, this love was short-lived as the climax occurred; he was such an appalling creature, and was so unrecognizable that some of the gods came together to execute him. 

Conflict (Post 6)

The conflict present in this myth is, of course, Odur's absence.  This event happened so suddenly and was so unexpected, and it is what triggered Freya's distress, leading her to take the long journey to locate him.  She passed through many foreign lands, inquiring every person she saw about her lost love.  With each failed attempt of finding him, she wept more and more, leaving golden tears to harden in the soil, and turning puddles into translucent amber.

Character Development (Post 5)

Freya is the protagonist of this myth as she searches the lands for her lost husband.  Freya is the goddess of fertility, beauty, and love.  Her hair is long and blonde, and her eyes are bright blue, making her renowned for her beauty.  She wears an enchanting necklace known as the Brisingamen, which only enhances her charm.  

Her husband, of whom she loves dearly, is Odur.  He is the god of the summer sun, and she the symbol of the earth, which bounds them together.  Odur is a bit of a flirt himself, and in this myth he wanders off only to get lost at sea.  

    Throughout the story, Freya goes through many different emotions.  She was angry and     distraught at the thought of Od leaving her, and so she set off on her journey.  Upon             finding him, her distress turned to compassion and forgiveness and soon after his death:     fury.  This emotion led her to turn on the other gods and goddesses whom she thought         committed the crime, and so she resented them until they offered her a placation of his           death.

    Of course, Od also changed throughout the story, as he went from a wandering husband to     a hideous sea monster.  His appearance was not the only difference, however.  After Freya     found and forgave him, he was overjoyed and swore to never leave her again. 

Setting of Od's Disappearance (Post 4)

The sun slowly rose that morning, leaving a gentle wash of light bring the room to life.  All was silent, too silent.  There was no other breath, no other heartbeat, other than her own.  The only thing left was the faint scent of Od imprinted in the wrinkled sheets.  As the sun rose higher in the sky, the room brightened, but revealing no trace of him.  With salty tears of gold streaming along the delicate curves of her face, Freya set draped her dark falcon cloak over her shoulders and lifted herself into the sky.  The crisp, cool air twirled her hair and soon ruffled her feathers.  The wind howled high above the green pastures below, and gold droplets descend to the earth, embedding themselves in the soft dirt.  As the sea neared, the strong taste of salt filled the air.  The water was warm, but with a refreshing coolness.  A figure floated in the water; it was enormous and unsightly, yet still approachable.  The eyes were dim and sad, and very recognizable as Od's. His skin was scaly and rough, smelling of sea foam and fish.  No matter though, for he was still the same being.