We are approaching Spring Equinox and stories about Persephone abound.

Spring Maiden turned Goddess of the Underworld.

Was she kidnapped by Hades? Or did she go willingly?

Were they in love? Or was his of one-sided infatuation?

Was she tricked to stay? Or did she choose it?

One favorite story is by Starhawk, found in Circle Round Raising Children in Goddess Traditions.

My personal preference is the retelling of this myth as a love story, and one of free will: 

Kore, a curious girl on the verge of womanhood, seeks to carve out a path of her own.
Not necessarily defiant of her parents’ Will, but certainly following her own intuition, measuring the risks and taking her fate into her own hands.
Contemporary.
Relevant.
Timeless.

This is a story that teaches us to see past the borders that divide us – the color of our skin, the nature of our cultures.

Kore ventures to foreign lands, seeking to discover truths, hoping to better understand the yearnings she feels inside. At a visceral level knowing there is more than she has been taught by those who raised her.
She meets Hades in this new land. They fall in love and he offers her what is his to give. His home, his seed.

Maturing together.

Building a home together.

She claims a new name – one that suits her new level of understanding of the world and of herself:
“Persephone.”

Loving both the life and the land of her origin, as well as this man and this new home, she feels torn. Her parents miss her. And they are frustrated that she is making decisions that are so counter to what they taught her. The guilt, even bullying ensues as so often does in families when such fractures arise.

Council is sought. 

Compromises are made. 

She chooses to honor her roots while continuing to be true to herself.

The Sun shines again. Light and growth occurring for all.

Story by Rev. “Twinkle” Marie Manning, Interfaith Minister, Story Teller, Mystic.

Originally posted on Twinkle’s World blog March 17th, 2014