There's Always Hope...

I speak to my mum every day. And recently, we’ve been emailing almost every day as well.

You’d think we’d run out of thinks to tell each other, but you would be wrong.

There’s always something to talk about with my mum. She is a fountain of knowledge.

Recently she reminded me of a Greek myth which I had learnt about many years ago. When I was in primary school, to be exact.

Anyway, I just thought I would share it…

Pandora’s Box.

Pandora was the first woman in Greek mythology.

Zeus ordered Hephaestus to make her as part of a punishment to mankind for Prometheus’s theft of the secret of fire.

Zeus was enraged by this theft and swore vengeance for man trying to obtain the secrets of the gods.

Hephaestus worked hard and created a clay masterpiece for Zeus.

Athena, goddess of wisdom, breathed life into her, taught her to weave and clothed her.

Aphrodite, goddess of love, made her beautiful.

Hermes taught her to charm and deceive.

Zeus was pleased with the creation, but had made her as a trap for Prometheus’s brother, Epimetheus.

Zeus named the woman ‘Pandora’ and sent her as a gift to Epimetheus, who had ignored Prometheus’s warnings not to trust Zeus.

Epimetheus fell in love with Pandora and married her.

Zeus, pleased that his manipulative plan was working, gave Pandora a beautiful box as a wedding gift. However, she was never allowed to open the box.

Pandora often wondered what was in the box but she was never left alone to be able to open it.

She began to wonder more and more what was in the box - she didn’t know why someone would send her a gift that she could not see!

It became very important to find out what was in there.

She could stand it no longer.

One day when everyone was out she crept up to the box, took the huge key, put it in the lock and turned. She lifted the lid.

But before she had a chance to look, the room had been filled with dreadful things.

Disease, despair, malice, greed, old age, death, hatred, violence, cruelty and war.

She slammed the lid down, keeping only the spirit of hope inside.

Mrs. H’s Moral to the Story:

To this day sometimes when things are really bad the only thing we have left is hope.

Hope was the last thing out of Pandora's Box following all the evils and tragedies of life - no matter what happens to you the hope of better things will sustain you.

It is the last gift in that, no matter how bleak things appear, hope is there in that you know it will pass.