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In The World's Wife, Carol Ann Duffy offers myth poems that are also myths for today in the form of a poem.  These poems converse with old myths and stories AND they are stories in themselves.  They display a deep appreciation for the poignancy of these tales, and a wicked, dark humor. 

I love them. 

As the title suggests, Duffy tells her myths from the perspective of the women who are largely silent in the older and more popular versions. This episode includes a handful of my favorites from the collection, accompanied by a bit of background about the relevant myth or fairytale.

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April is National Poetry month!

Myth and poetry have a long, shared history. In fact, our oldest known myths are poems. 

Have you ever wondered why this might be?

I suspect the intuitive rightness of myth as poetry springs from the ancient understanding of the sacred power of the word. In this episode, we explore the creative power of speech with the aid of a handful of contemporary poems that reference myths. These poems also give us a chance to plumb the questions at the heart of these myths.

I hope you find a poem, a poet, a thought, a moment in this podcast that inspires or provokes you. As Jeanette Winterson says: " [...] a poem is like a shot of espresso – the fastest way to get a hit of mental and spiritual energy."

Thanks for listening and keep the mystery in your life alive.

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The Greek goddess Athena was a warrior, the patron of cities and mentor of heroes, clear-eyed, practical, and strategic. What was her great power? 

She was the goddess of Reason.

Yes, the ancient Greek patriarchy, a model of misogyny, imagined "reason" as female.

This being myth, there's plenty to unpack and contradicts abound. This episode is your invitation to meet Athena and reflect on the conundrums she presents. She's present today and she's at work--- in what form and to what end, I wonder?

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Myth has an interesting and complex relationship to history. 

Myth is part of the historical record of our species, and part of the history of a given people. And myth shapes history. Myth gives rise to the beliefs and point of view that create our world, determine the present, and influence the future. This blending of myth and history can lead to important revelations and new understanding, and it can create blind spots. 

I started thinking about this after watching the movie "The Woman King," inspired by the warrior women of Dahomey, the Agojie. Visiting Europeans called these women "Amazons." I talk about the movie (no spoilers), Amazons, and some of the twists and turns of myth and history. 

This episode gestated with me a while and I learned a few things putting it together for you. I hope it gives you food for thought and enhances your appreciation of the movie (which I encourage you to see:)).

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The freedom to love and individuality. The difference between spiritual love and carnal love. Love for the self and love for a beloved. The fear and fascination elicited by those who don't fit conventional categories and definitions.

Hans Christian Andersen was probably not thinking about these ideas when he wrote his fairy tale "The Little Mermaid," at least not with a conscious agenda. And yet this story about a mermaid, a figure with a long mythological history, offers an interesting opportunity to reflect on these themes.

This original version by Andersen is not Disney. It might surprise you. The story doesn’t offer solutions  but it may launch valuable personal reflection into your beliefs about who and how to love, and how you value your love relationships. 

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A new year is a time of beginnings and possibility. A fresh and hopeful creativity infuses our aspirations. This is a good time to make conscious choices about the sources we turn to and the images we hold, as we form our goals, predictions, and hopes for the coming year.

According to the ancient Chinese zodiac, each year in a 60-year cycle has a particular character, set of opportunities, and challenges. 2023 is the  year of the Rabbit. What is the quality of the year of the Rabbit, and how can this inspire us in 2023?

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Yes, Christmas is grossly commercial, a taint that touches other year-closing holidays as well. And yet this time, and these traditions, have deep mythological roots that connect us to important gifts of the spirit. 

The mythic figure of Santa Claus reveals the tangled history of our year end aspirations and need for community. I hope this snapshot of some of his origin stories adds interest and inspiration to your holiday season.

Warm wishes for a wonder-filled season. See you in 2023!

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Whatever your ancestry, wherever your people had deep roots, winter was the time for storytelling. To gather together inside, stay warm, relax, and learn together. 

Winter stories in particular, are stories about the mysteries that bind our earthly world to the other worlds. Stories about the bridges between the visible and the invisible. Stories of the uncanny. 

They are myths about the beginning times, when everything came into being and found its rightful place. Stories of the mythic times that bear on today. Raven is one of these mysteries who has been with us from the very beginning of our storied existence. 

In this episode, I tell a couple of Haida stories about Raven based on material collected by Robert Bringhurst. Raven is often associated with winter and the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere. Raven teaches us how to go into the dark to bring forth the light. 

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“In this universe we are given two gifts: the ability to love and the ability to ask questions.”  -- Mary Oliver

The Arthurian legend of the knight Perceval and his quest for the grail was written by the French Romantic poet Chrétien de Troyes, who reworked Celtic legends and British history. 

The story includes King Arthur, his knights, and a number of unlucky damsels, but the mysterious loathly lady is the key.

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In this Norwegian fairy tale, the queen makes a mistake.

That's not the whole story.  

There's also a dragon.  And an opportunity to reflect on our fallibility, the tendency to blame, our story inheritance, and the empathy we might develop through imaginative engagement with what angers and disturbs us.

I hope you enjoyed the story.

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