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Kudos to the
winners of our Fall, 2010, Odes to Olympians contest, honoring the goddess
Athena! Peter Goulding
of Ireland won the contest for adults with his poem, A meeting with Athena, while Kaitlyn Linsley won the
under-18 competition with her poem, I,
Minerva.
As always,
judging poetry is a difficult task. We
received several hundred entries into the competitions. So we also want to draw your attention to those
who received honorable mentions. The
Adult Honorable Mentions include: Christi Thomas-McEachern;
Barnaby Dromgool; Lisa Mathews; and Jen Wang. In the under-18 category are Sam Cardosi, CJ Rausch,
Leighton Suen. Scroll down to read the poems of the winners and the
honorable mentions, and come back later to read about future contests. |
The Tapestry of Bronze is a series of novels set in Bronze
Age Greece. There’s no need to read our books to enter the contests,
but if you like mythology, or historical fiction, or exciting stories, we
think you’ll enjoy them!
To see our novels
at Amazon, available in either hardcopy or electronic formats, click on the
covers below. Your purchase helps
support future contests! |
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Peter Goulding First Place Winner –
Adult A meeting with Athena As I beneath the olive tree took shade, a warrior approached with
golden shield. She bore a mighty spear,
uncommon made, in which great shafts of
lightning were concealed. And round
her patient shoulders was revealed a snake-trimmed cloak
adorned with monstrous head. She strode with purpose
o’er the blackened field to where I lay,
transfixed, as if struck dead, frozen to the spot with purest dread. The goddess said, “I made it in my youth, this olive tree wherein
you flee the sun. Rest well, for herein
lies a simple truth that through the web of
ages has been spun.
Though wars have raged and battles have been won, this tree still offers
shade and luscious fruit. Fear not, for though you
mortals are undone and suffering
grows daily more acute, still has my tree a deep and sturdy root.” Then she was gone and I leapt up in fright and turned and turned, but
no-one could be seen. My heart banged loud, my
face was cold and white, remembering her ghastly
pelerine. I had no notion how long
I had been asleep, but now the sun
appeared more tame. And so I took a swig from
my canteen and set off down the path
with heart a-flame toward the bustling town that bears her name. Some words from Peter Goulding: For years I used to watch
Mastermind on the telly and was well aware that the
Greek mythology questions were always my Achilles Heel, so to speak. However,
it was only due to the Tapestry of Bronze competitions that I actually took
the trouble to research the characters and the stories. And it has opened up
a whole new world to me, for which I am truly grateful. * Kaitlyn Linsley First Place Winner –
Under 18 I, Minerva My eagle side
Christi Thomas-McEachern Honorable Mention: Adult The Wisdom of
Silence Touring
through Greece,
when I knew it all, I
bought a statue of Athena To
show my eleven students The
shallowness of their Purchases
of Greek jewelry and T-shirts. They
didn’t listen. I spoke louder. Blowdryers blew the
power on our ship. They
fumbled for their bracelets in the dark. I
grumbled until I heard a crack And
found the Goddess of Wisdom Left
thoughtlessly on my cabin floor. Her
mouth was chipped away, and I was Righteously
angry--at everyone. They
didn’t listen. I spoke louder. Once
home, I grew ill, and toured doctors’ offices. I
bought magnetic bracelets
and Prayed
to Christian statues for intervention. Athena
hung from my wall, mouthless. With
the pain, came impatience and loneliness. Misunderstandings
grew until one morning Athena
spoke to me. She
said, silence. Suffer
and listen. Speak to praise. Her
wisdom has restored me, not to health, but serenity. *
Barnaby Dromgool Honorable Mention: Adult Erichthonius’ Pledge * Jen Wang Honorable Mention: Adult Patron Goddess
of Girls with Glasses She, the
bright-eyed girl Who was never
a child, Is the one we
want to be like, The one for
which We, the night owls, Burn the oil
at midnight— An offering. We ask for her
guidance In defeating
the Gorgons We encounter
in the halls And winning
against older males With an olive branch. We hide among
books, Weaving neural
networks, In hopes of
becoming brilliant Like her, the
instructor Who showed us
how to sharpen Our wits and
shield ourselves From
temptations. Fully armed, We will enter
the world, And when we
turn into women, We still pray
to her, Asking not for
beauty or Domestic
talents, But for
cunning strategies, Like the
generals who serve her, To win love’s battle. * Lisa Mathews Honorable Mention: Adult Athena
Under My Roof
Sam Cardosi Honorable Mention: Under-18 You gaze down with storm cloud eyes. Τεν αληθεια
ξερο is Greek for “I know the
truth,” or, to go along with the final line of Sam Cardosi’s
poem, “For it is the truth I know.”
Although we both liked this poem, it could not win first prize, as the
rules specify that winning poems must be in English. * C. J. Rausch Honorable Mention: Under-18 Gray Eyes Do you feel
it? The gray eyes
watching watching over
our looms our smithing tools our crafts and
our projects? Do you feel
them on your back When we march
to war or the hero
embraces their fate? Do you feel
them in Athens or under an
olive tree or in the
temples or in the
guilds Like an owl's
eyes Do you feel
them in your mind? When you talk
strategy when you plan
something when you
think? Do you feel
the eyes of Athena watching you? * Leighton Suen “The Tale of Arachne from
Athena’s POV” I heard
a rumor about my student Arachne Apparently
she thinks she’s better than me I,
Athena, Goddess of Crafts and Strategy How
naďve in nature can this girl be? She’s
a mere mortal; I’m a deity I
can weave like: one, two, three The
one in error here is… she I’m
going to have to see her ASAP So
you want a little weaving contest To
try to prove that you’re the best Please
tell me this is just some jest My
patience is what you’re starting to test I
finally decided to compete at your behest And
I’ve toiled for hours now with no rest At
last, I think that all present can attest That
my tapestry is undoubtedly best It
contains scenes of Athens, my beloved city When
I opposed Poseidon, God of the sea Of
course, I achieved complete victory What
better moment can be in history? Oh.
No. You. Didn’t. I
cannot believe that scenes on your tapestry Include
a few portraying my father’s infidelity Are
you trying to enrage or infuriate me? Because
I feel myself getting quite angry Ha
ha! Silly girls think they can beat me Better
leave the weaving to the Queen Bee! I
admit that Arachne had skills – that I agree But
there can only be one with true mastery
Have
a nice life as a spider!
Visit the
winning poems of other Odes to Olympians contests!
Concerned
that you don't know enough about the Olympians to write poems about them? You
can explore these websites:
Parada's Greek
Mythology Link:
A tremendously detailed resource
Theoi Greek Mythology:
Exploring Classical mythology in
Literature and Art Timeless Myths: Greek myths and others as well
Several
have wondered: who are we and why do we do this? What exactly is this “Tapestry of Bronze?” First, our names are Victoria Grossack & Alice
Underwood. We sponsor this contest
because we want to encourage excellence and creativity. We’re using the same method used by the
Greeks back in Classical Athens: competition.
Instead of olive wreaths, we offer money and certificates for
prizes. We especially want to
encourage the under-18 because we want to support educators and students in
our own small way. The idea occurred
to us – most appropriately! – when we were visiting the ruins of ancient
Olympia in Greece. Second, the Tapestry of Bronze is a series of
interlocking novels. They are set in
the Bronze Age of Greece – several generations before the Trojan War. This was known to many as the “Golden Age
of Heroes,” but to us they seem to be made of bronze and not gold. Our series is a tapestry, because the books
tie together, but one book may focus on one character while another focuses
on another. Each book can be enjoyed
separately, or the books can be enjoyed together. As we state above, it is NOT necessary to purchase
or to read our novels in order to enter the contests. However, if you like mythology, or
historical fiction, or simply a good read, then click on one of the covers
below to see the books at Amazon.
Available in hardcopy and/or electronic format – you can start reading
them today!
Return to Home for Tapestry of Bronze Do you wish to contact us? Write to us at “tapestryofbronze” at
“yahoo.com” |
“A
wonderfully nuanced novel”
“Five
quills”
“A
crackling good read”
“Very
strongly recommended” You may be interested in visiting
other parts of our website: Our
Books (in English) Bιβλία στα ελληνκα
- Our Books (in Greek) Odes to Olympians
Contest Current: Winners of Past Contests: Zeus Hera Poseidon
Demeter Hermes Athena Apollo Artemis Ares Aphrodite Maps ( The Stories Behind
the Stories Acknowledgements, Thanks,
Bibliography and Links
“A
wonderfully nuanced novel”
“Five
quills”
“A
crackling good read”
“Very
strongly recommended”
“A
wonderfully nuanced novel”
“Five
quills”
“A
crackling good read”
“Very
strongly recommended”
“A
wonderfully nuanced novel”
“Five
quills”
“A
crackling good read”
“Very
strongly recommended” |
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