Eléni & M Move to Athens - Part 4

This new series has its history in the form of several short stories, several poems, and a 13-part series that is linked at the bottom via Part 3 of this series. Anthi Psomiadou has graciously agreed once more to appear as a fictional character in this new series.

Death does not concern us, because as long as we exist, death is not here. And when it does come, we no longer exist. Epicurus

The feast must have ended at some point because I awoke in bed next to Eléni, my love, who was more beautiful than ever. I was greeted by Goddess Athena when I went to the kitchen to get some water.

“Pós koimíthikes, M (How did you sleep, M)?” she asked in my mind, in Greek, of course.

I wish that I knew, my goddess. I do not even remember how it all ended.

“You can call me, Athena, from now on, M. I sent you all to bed when I thought that you had enough for one night. Anthi called a taxi and went to her home. Why do you use the initial M instead of the full word?”

Patrick has the full word. I am fine with the initial, and I always liked the letter M. Eléni likes it too. Do you not, Athena? I asked, a little apprehensive to call her by her name.

“I like everything that you like, M. You know that I love you, and when one loves someone, one loves everything good about them, and M is good. Is it not?”

I think so, my Athena. I mean, Athena.

“I am your Athena too. Please feel at home. Eléni knows that I love you both. I am happy to be awake again after so many years, though to me they seemed like days. Your love for me, and then Patrick’s love, brought me back to your world. It has changed in so many ways, but inside, you are still the same. Do you have specific plans for your new life in Athens, M?”

I will continue to write. It is part of who I am. And I can do my work from here too, though the six to seven hours difference with Montreal, depending on the time of year, means that I will have to do some of my work from late afternoon to early night, but mostly to check my email and make some calls, but not very often. My boss agreed, and the never-ending virus situation was instrumental in helping him to give me the green light.

“Very good, M! But you know that you do not have to work for a living anymore. I will take care of everything that we all need. Even Anthi can stop working if she wishes. Your lives are short and I want you all to be happy.”

Thank you, Athena, my goddess! I had to say it. My work is very easy. It is harder to write fiction than medical reports. But I will think about it and discuss it with Eléni. We will surely agree later on, and I would have to give my boss enough time to find a replacement. He is a good man.

“Take all the time that you need, M. My offer is permanent. You are part of me now. I already told Anthi the same and she replied like you, that she will think it through, especially that she would have no way to explain it, so she thought. But she had too much ouzo and forgot that I could arrange such little things. So, M, did you see a roach?”

No, I did not, and I hope that I never do. Patrick never saw one either, I surmised when I saw his lack of apprehension, knowing that he now lived in roach country. They will rule Earth one day along with the scorpions.

“You both make me laugh, but I understand that some fears cannot be simply controlled by willing them away. It is easier to keep the roaches away and leave them in Hades, as you both like to say.”

Is there anything that I can do for you, Athena, my goddess?

“Being here with Eléni and loving my Patrick is all that is needed. Everything will be alright as long as I am here. I miss my father but I know that only a mortal that loves him can awaken him, and there is no such mortal as far as I know.”

I am sorry, Athena, my goddess. By Zeus, I wish that I could help.

“You cannot do anything about it, unfortunately. It has to be spontaneous. It cannot be planned. A mortal woman has to be in love with him to bring him back. I know why you loved me. Patrick only loved me because of you. You instigated my return and Patrick completed it. Both of you awakened me. Only one of you could not have succeeded. Eléni is awake and thinking of you.”

I will leave you, then, Athena. I love you very much. Patrick must be writing.

“Yes. But he does not write as much as you.”

I would not either if you were around. I suspected that his love for you was the reason. But it is fine, Athena. He always considered love as the highest level of consciousness. I agree with him in many ways. But life is short, as you said, and there are other important things in life that complement love. I will see you later, my goddess.

“Go to her, M! Eléni is feeling us and smiling.”

I kissed Eléni and told her about Athena’s offer. She smiled and replied that she knew that it would come to that. We were living with a goddess who loved us and wanted us to be free to do what we loved. Such religions are scarce, and even those that offer some freedom, are limiting in other ways. I believe in Goddess Athena, may sound archaic and mythological. But when one takes the time to ponder about it, one can realize that all beliefs are archaic and mythological, though some less so than others.

It was unsettling when I realized that I could almost tap into our minds, save that of Athena, and feel what each one of us was feeling. I felt closer than ever to Patrick. Eléni became even more loved, if it was at all possible. And, strangest of all, I could also feel some of Anthi’s thoughts, which meant that she could also feel some of mine. Her mind seemed serene and full of love. Perhaps her beliefs, however construed, and being only positive, made them worthy even for those with no such beliefs. Science was never a system of beliefs. It is a method for finding truths about the world and the universe. Could science account for someone like Athena? It cannot, unless Athena shows herself and presents her case. But that will never happen, and we will never let her, knowing what our species are capable of. She knows it already, which may be the reason why I see sadness in her laughter, some hesitation in her wisdom. I think that I love her more than Patrick, and she knows it. But it does not matter since she loves us all, and I love Eléni, my true goddess on this pale blue dot.

Athena does not know death. We will all know it, though very briefly, perhaps the length of a subatomic fluctuation. We know life, however, and life could be what we strive to understand of it. Death is simply its end. It is, of course, understandable that many want it to continue eternally, albeit in another form. I guess that each one may have such a wish. But I think that Epicurus already held the truth over 2,200 years ago. Simple intuition can also reveal it. Science is only here to verify and discover truths about this unbelievable canvas we have termed existence.

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I would like to thank Anthi Psomiadou for her continued participation as a fictional character called Anthi, who always knows what time it is and that she cannot leave just yet.

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