2. Genesis
Genesis
Before my birth,
there were my parents:
oldest of twelve golden Titans
born of my grandmother Gaia’s womb.
My father, Oceanus,
was the Great River
that surrounded
Gaia’s whole earth.
It would be from his great river
that every sea and ocean
and lake and river
would be born.
And my mother, Tethys,
was the Goddess
of Fresh Water that nourished
the forests and animals
on Gaia’s green earth.
Before the Titans,
it had been Gaia and Ouranos,
the great sky, that ruled over all.
But power is a slow poison.
Ouranos was unhappy
having to share rulership with Gaia,
who had been more than his consort.
She was also his maker.
In his quest for solitary dominance,
Ouranos committed a terrible outrage
against Gaia and her children.
And in return, my youngest uncle,
Kronos, the God of Time,
usurped his father’s throne
to teach him a lesson.
Still, Gaia wept for her consort.
She wept for what was lost
inside the mouth of vengeance.
It was grief which led her
to speak her words about me.
Grief that curdled
her premonition
into my curse.