Ode to Acceptance (Poem)

Acceptance.

This is what Ares sought.

Lo, as he flies above the battlefield with sweet Aphrodite.

Behold: Ares, god of war.

Behold: Aphrodite, goddess of love.

Lo and behold these secret lovers, as they fly above the carnage, with not a care in the world.

Look upon the face of cruel Ares, who has a radiant smile; all the bloodshed below, and yet his eyes peer at fair Aphrodite, his smile meant for her.

Look now upon the face of kind Aphrodite, for she too has a smile; yet her eyes stray to Ares’ arms, his chest, his crotch, her smile a lustful one.

Aphrodite you see, cares not for Ares; her smile is an empty one, and her eyes betray her.

See how she has abandoned her husband, the crippled Hephaestus, though the blacksmith god has treated her well.

Shallow Aphrodite fled him for his ugliness, to handsome Ares, for Aphrodite considered him more of a man.

Poor Ares however, for his heart is true.

Shunned by all, an outcast on his home of Olympus, he found refuge in honeyed Aphrodite.

No one before had accepted him for who he was.

No one before had treated him like a human, much less a god.

Tumultuous Ares, not wanting to show weakness among his brethren, masked his sorrow with anger, his caring with sadism, his empathy with cruelty.

Lo, lies and deception.

Behold: Ares the kind.

Behold: Aphrodite the cruel.

Lo and behold these two gods, these two deities gazing at one another; one pretending to be manly, and the other pretending to be a lover.

Perhaps it is for the best; though a lie, it is a comforting one for innocent Ares.

Poor Ares, who simply seeks one thing:

Acceptance. 


Word Count: 293