Laistrygonians, Cyclops, and Angry Poseidon

Welcome Adventurers! 

By Dr. Susan Fisher at The Lukeion Project

You may not be boarding a physical ship for ports unknown, but the beginning of a new school year is its own odyssey.

Plans are made, provisions are gathered, and expectations are set, by both you and your crew of parents, teachers, coaches, and even admissions departments for some. In this sea of new syllabi, schedules, and deadlines it can become all too easy to see your year as a set of boxes to check off or a race to the finish line. It is important to meet your deadlines - this will make your journey way more pleasant and productive – but your upcoming year is about so much more than crossing t’s and dotting i’s. This school year is about the journey as much as the destination.

One who understood this concept better than many was the late 19th – early 20th century Greek poet, Constantine Kavafys. Drawing on his Classical heritage, Kavafys wrote his now-famous poem, Ithaka, about the importance of the journey. More specifically, the importance of mindset for the journey.

Ithaka  

-- By Constantine Kavafys (Translated from Greek by Edmund Keeley)

As you set out for Ithaka

hope your road is a long one,

full of adventure, full of discovery.

Laistrygonians, Cyclops,

angry Poseidon—don’t be afraid of them:

you’ll never find things like that on your way

as long as you keep your thoughts raised high,

as long as a rare excitement

stirs your spirit and your body.

Laistrygonians, Cyclops,

wild Poseidon—you won’t encounter them

unless you bring them along inside your soul,

unless your soul sets them up in front of you.

 

Hope your road is a long one.

May there be many summer mornings when,

with what pleasure, what joy,

you enter harbors you’re seeing for the first time;

may you stop at Phoenician trading stations

to buy fine things,

mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,

sensual perfume of every kind—

as many sensual perfumes as you can;

and may you visit many Egyptian cities

to learn and go on learning from their scholars.

 

Keep Ithaka always in your mind.

Arriving there is what you’re destined for.

But don’t hurry the journey at all.

Better if it lasts for years,

so you’re old by the time you reach the island,

wealthy with all you’ve gained on the way,

not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.

 

Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.

Without her you wouldn't have set out.

She has nothing left to give you now.

 

And if you find her poor, Ithaka won’t have fooled you.

Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,

you’ll have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.

 

You may have read that first stanza and thought, “Do I really hope this journey is long?” Summer and sleeping in is pretty fabulous after all. But do you really want the journey to be short, without enough time to soak up all you’re doing and let it impact you? Wonder, learning, growth all take time. Plus, there are roses to be sniffed and songs to be sung along the way and gathering treasures takes time too.

What might those treasures be that you will be gathering? Not likely ebony or mother-of-pearl, but perhaps new facts, new skills, new knowledge about yourself, your abilities, your hopes and dreams. These are infinitely more precious, I dare say.

Gathering these treasures takes work and perseverance. It often involves battling monsters seen and unseen as well. Your foes – your Laistrygonians, Cyclops and angry Poseidon – might be internet outages or ornery platforms. Or these monsters may rear their heads in the form of procrastination, perfectionism, a lack of confidence, or something else. These are the enemies Kavafys is writing about – the ones we bring along in our own souls that can sabotage our journeys.

Do not fret, brave adventurer, if you encounter any of these monsters, because you already possess the ability to defeat them. How? Follow the advice of Kavafys! Keep your thoughts raised high – higher than the to-do list and negative self-talk – and let the excitement of what you are learning and who you are becoming be your guides.

Like Odysseus, you will reach your Ithaka – the end of this year – and you will already be rich from the many things you have gained along the way. How exciting this adventure will be and we at the Lukeion Project are thrilled to be on it with you!