Zeus Rising: A Memoir

I am long forgotten but I do hope to change that. It has not been easy hiding out all this time. I’ve been invisible for millennia and it no longer sits well with me. I might as well come out and state my identity. It is the one name, other than Jesus, that stands out across all cultures. And if it does not, it should. My name is Zeus.

In my native tongue it is pronounced Zefs, but the name of the nation from which I sprang is Hellas, and that has long been overrun by the more vulgar term Greece. Let’s go with Zeus. There are more significant battles to wage. You may think that these pages represent the rantings of a crazy man, but I assure you that I am very sane, and I am not a man.

I was truly a king, but I have adjusted to life without power. It has been dreadful at times, but I persist. Most do, but not as long as I have. And I have grown cold to this world, but I have compassion for those around me who do not have nearly enough time to make sense of it all. I look like man, and I feel like man, but I am not a man. I am not coming out of the shadows just yet, but perhaps this lays the groundwork for doing just that.

What are my goals for this revelatory tome, and why now? I suppose it’s to let people know that they are not alone in their worries. This is cliché and not entirely true. Perhaps it is to let everyone know that the best traditions of the West, namely a search for truth, beauty, and freedom, are still vital. The most important element, eleftheria, what you call freedom, is something I’ve come to embrace, although it was at the heart of my ouster as king. It’s probably not that either. I hope you indulge me in using this literary exercise to find myself. I sound like a snowflake, but that is what I am setting out to do. I am no different from Hemingway or Kazantzakis really.

And, America, if you don’t wake up soon – the place I now call home – you will come to miss your freedom greatly. Power will revert to the hands of the very few, or the one, and when that happens it will take a hell of a long time, and a lot of bloodletting, to get it back. Lincoln was right, you are the last best hope of Man. The current American president, as I write these very words, is dim, shameless, black-hearted, and could signal the end of the West. If you think I am overstating this, please realize that you have not seen as much as I have. Not even close. Am I aiming to fight for the little guy, as the Americans like to say? Maybe that’s my story.

Or you might wonder if I am tired of having my former glory fictionalized by self-important writers and simpleton actors who have no idea what it is like to lead fellow gods, set the example for mortals, and wield lightning. Maybe it is a bit of all that, but I am no longer that vain. Yes, I wielded lightning; that’s no myth. How it gave charge to my entire immortal body; it was excruciating. The price my body paid was almost as great as those who were hit by its force. Of course, they didn’t live to tell about it, so there’s that. Am I admitting to criminal or immoral behavior here? Not at all. I was king and god, not God, and I was judge and jury, and, yes, executioner, but that was my role at the time, and you cannot fault me for that. I helped far more people than I hurt. And I do not hurl lightning anymore.

And you might be wondering about the one God and my relationship with Him. I suppose by reading these words, and if you believe that I was the first amongst the Hellenic gods, you must wonder if He is real. I’ve never seen him, but I’ve heard him countless times. He is relentless, consistent, and kind but fiery, and he is disgusted by liars, charlatans, and fascists.

He’ll take you as you are – gay or straight – if you are true to yourself, kind to others, and do not lie. I get along with Him, but he coerced me – not all too gently – to give up my powers centuries ago. Has he let me write this memoir? I did not ask permission, nor will I seek forgiveness. Could I suffer his wrath? No comment. But I could not remain silent any longer. He is the one with all the power, but he uses almost none of it. His passivity is infuriating but I am not going to spend time talking about Him. This is my time to tell my story and, in keeping with my own distaste for liars, I will do so with the intention of retelling events as they occurred.

I hope you’ll come to appreciate and trust me. It’s been an extraordinary and very long life, but I am not done yet. I have some fire left. And, be forewarned, there are a few more like me who are walking in your midst. You are not as safe as you think. And, as I said earlier, you may think I am crazy or even delusional, but I will prove to you who I really am. I am a god.

Before I jump back to ancient times, let me describe the events that brought about my recent mid-life crisis. Yes, it was one of many, but it was one of the most severe cases I have ever experienced. I guess my story, at its core, is about my search for a reason to go on living after what has felt like a million years.