Echo/Narcissus

First, we meet Echo, a nymph whose two loves included talking incessantly and a young man named Narcissus. She helped Hera's unfaithful husband escape by chatting to Hera in order to distract her, which did not please the goddess in the least. She retaliated by virtually stealing Echo's voice, making it possible for her to speak only when she repeated the recent words of another person.

We haven't forgotten about Narcissus, right? The guy who Echo was crazy about? Right, so Echo occasionally waited around him in the woods, just watching him, and one day they had a little exchange (or as much of an exchange as you can have when one person can only repeat words). She eventually ran at him and threw her arms around him, but he pushed her away, telling her angrily that he'd never love someone like her. Heartbroken, she ran to the mountains and lived only a little while longer in her grief; when she died, she faded into the mountain stone and all that remained was her voice, which we know now as her name.

This wasn't the first time Narcissus had broken hearts, though; he had before, and he kept doing it. The gods grew tired of it, and wanted him to know what it felt like to love someone incapable of loving back. They cursed him so that he fell in love with his own reflection, and he stared longingly at it day after day after day; like Echo, he soon died of grief.

Greek myths are heartwarming, no?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ci32xjQtUo

also, someone made a sims version of this story??? I haven't watched it, so I don't think we should watch it in class if I'm picked to read, but still. The more you know!



Okay, so an altruist I admire or a narcissist I abhor? This is a surprisingly difficult question, honestly. I don't know, I'm drawing a blank right now. I like nice people. I try to like not-nice people but it doesn't always work out. You know how it goes.

I think it should be noted, though, that while famous altruists tend to come to mind first, there are also some very everyday people who are tremendous altruists. So many of my friends and others who I'm fortunate enough to know are inspiring people and I learn as much from them as I do from the well-known names of help-givers all over the world.

SORRY I'm a cheesy person and I'll stop now farewell friends.