“The Gift of Sound and Music”

(Written in 2014)

To tell you how sound and music was given to mankind, I must first tell you how humanity began...

Long ago, when the planet was first created and after the sky, land and sea had been separated; the gods and goddesses of the world wanted something more. "How about a day and night?" One god suggested. "How about living creatures?" Asked another. Both ideas were thought over and used, thus creating a day and night cycle and creatures of every size, shape and color to roam the planet-whether it was in the sky, on the land or swimming in the sea. The task took a total of six days and once completed, the gods and goddesses looked down at their work and were very pleased with themselves. Later that night, they all had a feast of ambrosia (drink of the gods) and food prepared from the best resources they could find.

After a while, the gods and goddesses grew weary and later, they retired to their respective homes: some north of the planet, where the wind was cold as ice; some went south to the warm and more dry areas such as a desert could be found; while others traveled west to be the first to see the sun rise and those that traveled east would enjoy the sun for a longer period of time before it too, would cycle back to the west then east again. In the end, only one god and one goddess remained. The god, a man with graying hair and wrinkles; the goddess, a woman with burgundy curls and a youthful appearance. Both didn't have names, but later on, they would be given names by the mortals that would be created....

The god tired after using some of his power to help bring about night and day, plus the creatures; bade his wife good-night and went to sleep upon some cirrus clouds. The wife, however, wasn't tired at all and while her husband slept, she became saddened. The goddess thought of how all the other gods and goddesses had contributed to the newly formed planet and how she didn't. It wasn't that she couldn't, but the goddess wanted something else, something besides a day and night cycle and a whole bunch of animals. She wanted something that was more like her...

After hours of thinking, the goddess came up with an idea. What if I make children from the soil of the planet? She thought, before checking to make sure her husband was asleep and then descending to the planet beneath her home. The goddess's feet first touched the soft ground and she jumped with excitement. Maybe I'll also name this planet as well....hmm...how about Earth? She thought, before bending over the ground and with her hands scooped out soil and mud. Thinking of her husband, the goddess first formed a man: he was muscular and tall. Then thinking of herself, she created a woman: she ended up being lean and short. Pleased with herself, the goddess began working on the "insides" of her creations.

As the goddess worked, hours had passed and the husband-who was in a deep sleep-woke up to find that his wife wasn't beside him. Worried, he searched the north, south, east and western domains of the gods and goddesses, but his wife was nowhere to be found. Once after returning home, the god sat on a cloud and tried to figure out where his wife was. It wasn't until daybreak though, when it literally dawned on him. His wife was on the newly formed planet. Curious to see what she was up to, the god descended as well.

After traveling miles upon miles, the god finally found his wife. She was making something from the ground of the planet. Striding up to her, the god says, "What are you doing dear wife?" "I am making a man and woman." She exclaimed. "A man and woman? Why would you make those?" He asks in response. "Because I can't have children, but by using this earth, I can create children in my image." His wife replied. The god became angry. He knew his wife couldn't bear him any children and whenever she brought up the word "children" it made him hurt on the inside. "Dear, we don't need any children. I've already given us day and night, not to mention the animals. Why not have a pet instead of a child?" "Because dear husband, they are not the same." She said, still molding and re-shaping something that looked like a heart. After some more pieces of earth were placed inside the "man" and "woman", the goddess then leaned over and kissed both of her children on the lips-breathing life into them. At first, the god didn't know what his wife was doing, but as soon as the "man" and "woman" started moving, the god glared at his wife. "YOU AREN'T SUPPOSED TO CREATE BEINGS LIKE US!!!" He shouted, causing the mountains and the ground to shake. "THEY CAN NEVER BE GODS LIKE US!!!" Angry, he grabbed his wife before she could finish her work. "No-o-o, I have to give them hearing and a vo-i--." But she was cut off as the god took his wife back to their home. There, he then put barriers around their domain. "NO MORE INVENTIONS FROM YOU!!!" He shouted, before storming off to another cirrus cloud to cool down. The goddess cried and cursed her husband, but at least she was able to keep an eye on her children and that alone made her happy...

Now that you know how mankind was created, without the ability to hear or speak, I will now tell you the story of sound and music.

Mankind suffered. How would they communicate with themselves and how would they survive against nature? How would they know if danger was lurking in the shadows? For many years, the embodiments of earth suffered...then one day, looking on from the heavens in the west, was a young god. One who loved to sing and dance, but he had a problem: he couldn't visit the earth without attracting the other gods' and goddesses' attention. His intentions were to help mankind hear and speak songs to and of the gods, but he already knew that the gods didn't want anything to do with mankind. Of course, the young god heard about how mankind was created and knew that the goddess who created them was still in her prison. The young god also knew that she desperately wanted to finish her work, but knew she couldn't. How did he know this you ask? Well, it's simple really. The young god would visit her every night, while her husband slept, and come up with ideas on how to help her children. They were like a mother and son.

Anyways, the young god devised a plan. On the following day, he set to work on something that would produce music and urge one to dance. Two days and one night passed before the god finished his masterpiece. In the palm of his hand laid a small wooden box, made of cherry wood, with a lid. Upon opening the lid, the box would emit an enticing melody that would surely cause a "man" or "woman" to listen, sing and dance. The box was also intricately carved with the gold of gods and depicted a scene of the young god himself meeting with the creator goddess. Pleased with himself, the young god then whistled a short, merry tune and suddenly a bird as black as night appeared.

Urging the bird closer, the god then tied the box to the bird's leg-using a piece of his thick, gold hair-before shooing it away. Both excited and nervous, the young god watched the bird fly away towards the horizon...

Shifting from the bird, there was a man-a farmer-who was now hunting in the woods to support himself and his daughter. He often wondered if he would catch anything: a rabbit, maybe a doe or even a squirrel; but for some reason, he couldn't catch anything. Oh gods! Have I done something wrong that you would oppose me? Have I not always been your faithful servant? The man would think as he trudged through the forest, checking traps in the bushes and nets in the river. What the man didn't know was that the young god, who watched from the heavens, had actually sung all the animals from their natural homes to spend a day in the god's garden of paradise. All except the bird with the music box.

So while all the other animals were enjoying themselves on the flowers, bushes and grass found in the garden of paradise, the bird flew through the silent forest. Now the man couldn't hear anything, but he could see with his eyes and for just an instant, he saw a black tip of a wing in the early morning sky. Aha! Thought the man, stringing an arrow into his bow and raising it. He waited and waited, so when the bird finally reappeared, the man shot the bird down and quickly went to retrieve it. Upon finding, the farmer noticed that the bird was carrying something that looked like a block of wood. Picking it up, along with the bird, the man returned home to his daughter.

To make a long story short, the daughter was overjoyed to see her father safe and was even more surprised when her father revealed the strange-looking piece of wood. Happy, the girl took the block of wood and noticed that it was very detailed and it also looked like it had a lid on it. Curious, the girl lifted the lid back and suddenly heard a beautiful melody coming out of it. "Father! Isn't it beautiful?" She said aloud, suddenly putting her hand over her mouth. "Father? Can you hear and speak as well?" The girl asked, wondering if the box's magic happened only to her. "I-I-think so..." Her father replied, "but how?" "It must be the music coming from this box! It must be a gift from the gods!" His daughter exclaimed, now jumping and dancing with joy, just as the young god had predicted it would. As afternoon then evening came, both the girl and her father celebrated the miraculous gift of sound and music.

Eventually as the years passed, things started getting worse for the farmer and his daughter because they shared the young god's gift with others. Many wanted the box for themselves and tried to steal the godly gift, while many wanted to just rid the farmer and his daughter because they thought sound and music were omens of evil. Luckily, the young god protected the farmer and the daughter as they continued to share his gift...

After five years, and many travels, the farmer was exhausted and old while the girl was just entering into womanhood. Once a girl, she was now kind, caring and lovely and her father, once a middle-aged man; was now old and wrinkled. "Oh Lyra, why don't you marry and have children? You don't need an old codger like me anymore...I'm old now and I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving you without anyone to support you. What kind of father would I be if I continued having you by my side and all to myself?" Saying this last part with a wrinkled smile. Lyra smiled in return. "You would be the most wonderful father in the world." Hugging him, she then made his bed and helped him over to it. "Good-night father, and may the god's watch over you." She said, kissing his cheek and pulling the covers up, over his body. Lyra then went to sleep herself.

Later that night, the farmer left the mortal world to join the gods and his ancestors; leaving Lyra all alone. In the morning, Lyra found her father cold as ice and with help from her friends and relatives; they burned her father's body and said words of farewell and good-luck. After the funeral, Lyra cried. She cried for many days and after the third week of mourning, she wept no more and began moving on with her life. Wanting to follow her father's last wishes, Lyra traveled in the pursuit of finding a husband. She found many men her age who wanted a lovely wife, but when they found out that Lyra was poor, they turned her away and never spoke with her again. Majority only wanted a wealthy and submissive wife-none of which Lyra was-so she returned home disappointed.

There, she dug through her old belongings and found the small wooden box her father had given her. Spilling some more tears, Lyra held the box in her hands and prayed: "Oh gods and goddesses please hear my prayer. Help me find a husband who would love and support me. Someone who can share and express my love of music and song..."Lyra cuts off her prayer and sighs. Who would ever grant a prayer such as the likes of mine? She thought before hearing a "pop" that caught her off-guard. Looking from her folded hands and her lap, Lyra searched the room and jumped. There standing by her bed was a handsome man with hair as gold as the sun. Out of shock, Lyra accidentally dropped the wooden box. Realizing what was happening, she bent over to catch the box, "Oh no..."...

Suddenly the box floated in mid-air before landing into the man's open palm. With wide eyes, Lyra stared at him. "Who are you?" She asked. "I am the god of sound and music, I am given many names from your kind, but you may call me anything you like." He replied, his voice deep and caressing like the sound of an ocean's waves, and smiling as well. "I see you have taken good care of my gift; it even tells me that you have gone on many travels to share its music." Lyra just nodded. "I also heard your prayer...." The man began saying and turned to look more closely at Lyra's face. "I, myself, have found you worthy of being my bride. Will you accept to be my wife and help me start the world anew with sound and music? Connecting all living and non-living things?" He asked, taking pleasure in watching Lyra's face turn a deep-red. Slowly, he walked over to her and took her hand. "Will you be my muse? My subject for every song and poem I'll create?" Shyly, Lyra agreed to be the god's wife, for he was the one who watched from the heavens, and together they went to his home in the heavens of the west. There, he gave Lyra the "elixir of life" and she became an immortal. Together, as promised, they and the other gods/goddesses of the world, cleansed of world of silence; along with profanity and sin for some humans were using speech for foul deeds, and created the planet anew. This time, with Lyra and the music box, the planet was reborn with sound and music as a connection to all living and non-living things.

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