Double-bubble-daydream-queen - Life Is Soup And I Am A Fork.

The more stressed I am the more I daydream and the more I waste my time.

my favourite thing about the story of hades and persephone is that the story grew up with us.

i think most of us, when we were young girls ourselves, heard that first, most tragic version of the story: persephone, the innocent child of spring, who wandered into a dark, terrible place, and ate of a cursed garden. hades, meanwhile, was cast as a shadowy, grasping seducer, looming from the darkness: here he stood, the god of riches, of gemstones and bones, of cold, dead things, who wanted to snatch a little bit of sunlight for himself.

and then came the second version of the story, when we were older, not so much a change in narrative as it was of perspective: we heard about zeus raping leta, we read the way medusa was cursed for being raped by poseidon, we read about athena’s jealousy when she was outwoven by arachne, about hera tossing little hephaestus down a cliff because he wasn’t as beautiful as a god ought to be.

once more, we considered hades: the youngest of the trinity, free of spite and hatred and fits of rage, running an empire greater than his brothers’ together, with little ego and quiet efficiency. a god who only took one wife, only loved once, and then too: wholly, completely.

like something not out of a horror movie, but perhaps, indeed, a fairytale.

then the third turn, when we had grown older, acquired a veneer of cynicism, suffered boys who never grew to men, when we realized that the only way our sexuality would not be annexed was if we conquered it ourselves.

then came kore, the woman of spring, who found in hades a quiet, dark refuge, away from demeter’s wrath and hungry possession, away from the squabbles of those tiresome, reckless gods. the girl who fell in love with darkness. the goddess whose spirit was of renewal and rebirth, and still flourished in the heart of the underworld, the duality of her nature only serving to highlight her strength.

hades remained as he ever was, unchanging, like death itself. but persephone grew, acquired facets and beauty in her change, spring given form in metaphor and mythology.

hades and persephone grew with us. that’s why they’re powerful. that’s why they’re loved.

Persephone: Where have you been?

Hades, coming back from a meeting with Poseidon and Zeus: Emotional hell.

Hades:

cERBERUS GET OUT OF THAT PIT RIGHT NOW THAT’S FOR DEAD PEOPLE NOT GOOD BOYS!!

Surviving college

I saw a really helpful post by @daisystudies about tips for college (link to post) and I felt inspired to share some things I learnt during my first year:

Commute will get easier - If you live close enough to your college, that you don’t have to move there, but far enough for it to be a long commute, I promise it’s worth it and it gets easier. Make sure to research ways to make commuting cheaper especially for students (most countries offer long term tickets for cheaper).

Everyone is just as lost as you are - Not even the older students are much wiser trust me.Being confused and stressed is super normal! It’s a big change, but you’ll adapt and it will get easier.

Everybody is lonely and everyone wants to make friends - People do not want to be alone and they will want to talk to you. Everyone seeks a companion and they are opened to a conversation. If you’re not brave enough to start talking to strangers (that’s okay) just try to look opened to talking to someone. Smile a bit, don’t spend all of your time staring into your phone, take part in class. I promise people aren’t as terrifying as they seem.

Professors who try to scare you are assholes and are not worth to stress over - I meet two types of professors: those who try to encourage students and those who are proud of their class being difficult. My very first lecture started with the professor listing reason why we don’t deserve to be there, which was scary. I later realised that people like that are not worth my attention. I promise you will meet great professors who will feel like mentors and will help you.

You’re largerly on your own - I know this sounds awful but stick with me for a second. In high school you are told all deadlines, reminded of important tasks and you get a very rigid schedule. In college it’s up to you to look up deadlines, find all necessary requirements and sign up for exams. This will be stressful at first but it also offers far more freedom and often allows you to do things on your own schedule.

Physical health and activity is way more important than you think - I beg you to move your body at least 3 times a week. Walk, do yoga, stretch, do sports, go to the gym - anything. Just make sure you don’t neglect your body just because of a busy schedule. It can and will do more damage than you might think.

College social life is a bit over romanticised - This might be the covid era student in me speaking but I still feel it’s important to mention. It won’t be like you see in shows and movies. Doesn’t mean it’s never fun… but still make sure not to expect the greatest years of your life. Best case scenario: you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Get a light laptop - this depends on what you study, but most majors do not need you to have an expensive computer. It’s just better to have something to have all your notes on and a lot of classes are so fast paced it’s impossible to hand write without having to go back and fill in large amounts of information, which in turn takes a lot of extra time.

Your mental health is not worth sacrificing for good grades or even a finished degree - Please set your priorities right in the beginning. Your health is the most important thing you have. You can always live an amazing life without a degree but not without your health.

THE GODS AS CUTE STUFF THEY DO

Aphrodite: Always has some candy in her pockets so if she meets little kids or someone sad she can cheer them up. She bewitched the candy so it’s always the favorite flavor of the person who eats it.

Hermes: Lets his friend catch a ride on his back if they’re in a hurry and there’s mad traffic. Never asks anything in return because he secretly loves normal people’s reactions to flying.

Dionysus: Reads every single post on Hestia’s blog and comments encouragements on her poems under fake names.

Hephaestus: Has an almost unhealthy addiction of adopting small stray animals for a few nights. Tried to rescue a venomous snake that was in danger of freezing once and got bitten. Had no regrets because the snake survived.

Hestia: Cooks for the family and packs their lunch in little name-coordinated boxes. Everyone pretends like they are way too mature for stuff like this but they love it.

Ares: Wears each and every friendship bracelet he’s received from kids over the literal thousands of years on his belt.

Artemis: Organizes themed Christmas greeting cards, succeeds in getting everyone in the pic (“even uncle Hades and his idiotic dog”).

Apollo: Plays the guitar and sings around campfires. Somehow manages to not be really fricking annoying while doing so. And in his own words: Doesn’t kill Hermes every time he asks for Wonderwall.

Demeter: Names plants after people she likes and grows a section of “cheer up herbs”, that smell like a combination of cotton candy and wild flowers when touched. She gives a batch to everyone from time to time to prevent family disasters. Dinnertime catastrophes decreased since she started.

Athene: Reads books in her spare time to kids and elderly. Sometimes she tells stories from her past instead of what’s actually in the book. Kids love her.

Persephone: Takes care of Cerberus when Hades is away. Acts like they don’t really get along but absolutely spoils the dog when it’s just the two of them. They even sleep in the same bed.

Hera: Somehow senses when someone in the family is in trouble. Hermes and Dionysus have escaped death thanks to this mom power several times.

Hades: Hosts the best game nights ever. Unlimited snacks, games, everything you can think of. Apollo once made fun of him and now game night’s only once every 6 months but it’s still awesome.

Poseidon: Gathers and repairs stuff that’s fallen into the sea and gives it to those in need under anonymous donations.

Zeus: Dresses up as Santa every Christmas to fly around the city real low and waves at kids who spot him from their window. Insists on keeping his beard all year long so he can “Stay in character. Method acting, ever heard of it?”

If you were to vacuum up jello through a metal tube, well I think that’d be a neat noise 

If you really care about people who have misidentified themselves, you won’t attack the labels they currently identify with. You’ll provide a safe environment for them to explore and question, and let them figure out what their true identity is.

family appalled that their very quiet well behaved mature child who never caused any problems has grown up and turned out to have many many problems. more news at 8!