Conversations of Olympian Proportions

Carter and I have been enjoying Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, which has spurred several interesting conversations, ranging from logistics of godly love affairs to matters of Heaven and Hell. Archie, as always, is listening more than I realize, and working to assimilate the cast of heroes, gods and beasts into his world.

Some of these conversations happen while we’re actually reading the book:

Carter: (upon hearing an exerpt from the book describing Hades as wealthy) Why would they make the god of the underworld rich?

Me: Ummm I don’t know- maybe it’s related to the whole “money is the root of all evil” thing.

Carter: (Surprised) Money is the root of all evil? Wow. (Thoughtful) We must be really lucky then.

Later, there was a section of the book explaining why a Christian preacher would wind up in the Greek underworld. “Humans see what they want to see,” the character answers.

Carter: Hmmm. Mom? So if you believe in Heaven then, do you go there?

Me: Gee, Carter, there’s lots of ways to look at that- different people believe different things. . . (trying to find a way to explain what I believe without discounting others, or inadvertently closing Carter’s young mind)

Carter: I believe in Mars. Do you think I’ll go there then?

Then today I overheard Archie searching for a lost toy.

Archie: It’s so lost, it can’t be found. It’s so lost, even Zeus can’t find it. It’s so lost, (long pause) even Santa couldn’t find it ever.

Assimilation at its best. Piaget would love watching my boys make meaning.