A Myth

artwork by Vivien A.
Grade 7

Recently. Mrs. Trammel's classes studied mythology, and after learning all the trappings of Greek mythology, she challenged them to craft an original myth.  The assignment unleashed Isabel's creativity, as you can see below.  She shows us Disney is not the only one who can craft a tale of frozen whimsy.

Kairos

         Kairos is the goddess of time. She lives on Mt. Grandfather, separate from all the Olympians. On this mountain, she makes time pass, controls night and day, decides when people are born, and when they die. Kairos has the ability to pause, rewind, and fast-forward time. She is neither good nor evil, but the universe would not work properly without her. Many people, even a few of the gods, do not like her. They believe she possesses too much power over the world. Because of this, Kairos is a bit of an outcast among the gods and is very lonely on her mountain. She does not even like her own powers much.

       When Kairos first learned of her powers, she was felicitous. She traveled all over time seeing the wonders of the world, and she loved it. She saw much more than most had, and because of this, Zeus made her swear by the river Styx to never tell anyone other than the gods what she saw. Kairos saw beyond Greece and beyond the ancient world. She knew well about the modern cities and technologies that were soon to come and about the dinosaurs and cave men who inhabited the land long ago. 

        One day, when Kairos was weary of time-traveling and controlling the fates of human beings, she decided to explore Earth. Seeing the beautiful green rolling hills, peaceful forests, and majestic snow-capped mountains reminded her that present-day Earth itself is full of wonders. Kairos was walking through a small village when she started a conversation with a poor man named Lykaon selling crops on the street. Kairos enjoyed the man’s company, so every time she came down to Earth from then on, she and Lykaon would get together and talk.

      Eventually, they fell in love. Kairos could no longer resist the temptation to bring Lykaon along with her on her adventures throughout time. For one whole day, the two traveled far and wide from places like New York City in two thousand fourteen, to the planet Oolzynus in three thousand fifty. They had such a wonderful time that Kairos forgot about her oath by the river Styx. 

       At the end of the day, Lykaon’s human body was worn out from all of the time travel and he died. Kairos was too depressed to care that she was deprived of ambrosia and nectar, and she mourned Lykaon for years. She had decided that the company of others was not good after all and went back to being lonely on her mountain. Sometimes, she would cry so hard that her powers got out of control, and time would freeze, freezing her tears with it. 

      This is why we have snowflakes.  They are Kairos’s frozen tears.

 

by Isabel A.

Grade 7