Spring in Greece

Nature in blossom, Greece in celebration.

Dazzling sunshiny days tempt us to rush to green fields, meadows in full bloom, gurgling rivers and still lakes. Spring is the time when Mother Nature strokes Earth with its colours and aromas and creates a dreamy atmosphere all over Greece.

But why does spring come? How does it happen? Let me tell you an ancient Greek myth and find out….

Demeter, Goddess of Agriculture and daughter of Cronus and Rhea, had a very beautiful daughter named Persephone. One day, while Persephone was playing in the fields, Hades, God of the Underworld, saw her and kidnapped her. He wanted to marry her and make her live with him in the Underworld. No one knew what had happened to Persephone. Hades locked her in a beautifully decorated room in the Hall of Hades. He brought her all kinds of delicious food but Persephone refused to eat. She had heard that if you ate anything in Hades, you could never leave. So she started crying in despair.  Her mother, Demeter, heard her cries but did not know where she was. Distressed by this disappearance, Demeter left all the harvest die and as a result, mass famine struck. Zeus felt that this could not go on but did not know what to do. One day while Apollo, the God of Light and Sun, was making his rounds through the Underworld, he spotted Persephone down there and reported the finding to Zeus. Zeus then sent Hermes, the messenger God, to bring Persephone back. Unfortunately, Hades had tricked Persephone and persuaded her to eat six pomegranate seeds. This trickery bound her to return to the underworld for six months every year.

That's why we have seasons. Every spring, Demeter makes sure flowers are blooming and crops are growing and the fields are green with welcome. Every fall, when Persephone returns to the Underworld, Demeter ignores the crops and flowers and lets them die. Each spring, Demeter brings everything to life again, ready to welcome her daughter's return.

I love this story…there is something magical about it…and of course I love spring…every spring I see things in a different way.... I feel optimistic and happy and I smile more often…it feels like I am celebrating Nature along with Demeter and Persephone….

Popi, Comenius team, Greece