By Dave Donovan
Attention Students: Sad news. Odysseus never made it home. Homer’s epic was an inflated balloon told to nudge weaklings toward a braver path. The Sirens were the culprits; they killed him. Yes he was roped to the mast, but he cut himself loose. (What hero doesn’t hide a blade in his belt for emergencies?)
A sea nymph saw it all. The king swam for shore, those lusty voices scraping the inside of his brain, while his soldiers kept rowing, gazing enviously at their captain’s euphoric face, which beamed. Like sunlight. Like a man guaranteed a sure thing. And a good death.
I love rewrites of the classics. Nicely done.
Very nicely executed (pun intended:))! I enjoyed reading it very much, thanks!
Wonderful imagery/appropriate thought: the hero thankful for a “good death”.