Goddess of the Week: Hera

Hera Campana. Marble, Roman copy of an hellenistic original, 2nd century AD (?). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I think we need a goddess for the Olympics, don't you?  I give us Hera, the Greek goddess of marriage.

In the ancient games, women were neither allowed to compete nor watch the Olympics.  If you even tried you would be thrown off a cliff and killed.

Eventually, however, the Greeks came up with a female equivalent that they called Hera's games.  Like the original Olympics, Hera's Games consisted of foot races.  The women's races were a little shorter than the men's, and while the men competed completely naked the women wore stylish little men's tunics.

The winners of Hera's games won laurel crowns and meat, and they got to have their names and likenesses displayed on the wall of Hera's temple.

Most of us, of course, will never compete in the Olympics, and, in fact, most of us will only muster the energy to watch running races for a few weeks every four years. But, in our ways, we all run races and even marathons.  So channel this goddess when the races seems too long and too hard or, frankly, when you need a new bra. You don't want the sisters flopping all about.  Invest wisely. Insist on good support.

Need a goddess? I got goddesse! Post a comment explaining what you need or want a goddess for and I will see what I can find. It's fun! It's free! It's more interesting than volleyball.