an origin myth about the lincoln memorial. |
February 12, 1914 Abraham Lincoln was walking around his property, having a grand day until, he saw a young man. The man was standing by Abraham’s favorite maple tree, and then the man set it on fire. Abraham almost died. Abraham’s father and he had grown that maple tree together, and Abraham had taken care of it ever since his father died. “Stop that man,” cried out Abraham. However, no one was around to hear him. So Abraham began to chase after the man. All the while, Demeter the goddess of the harvest was watching. With her heart of love and compassion she made a new maple tree grow from the burning ashes of the old one. Abraham had decided to give up chasing the man, and returned home. Abraham saw the new tree shining with its glory, but turned away in disgust. This was not the tree Abraham and his father had grown, it was just a mere duplicate. This action made Demeter angry. Turning away her gift was like burning down all the crops in the world to her. So she slowly spoke the words of a deadly curse, which would change Lincoln’s life forever. “Shall one not return thanks for a gift he is given, he is the one that will turn to stone as thy sits upon his throne,” she whispered to the wind. Then Abraham sat down thinking about ways he could get rid of the tree. The grounds began to shake, and his bones began to ache. Stone started to crawl up Abraham’s legs until he couldn’t move from his chair. Yet he did not struggle because he knew there was no use. Then he was completely covered. Now Abraham sits there and looks blankly into the distance, with out emotion and without feeling. People wonder what he is looking at. They wonder why he doesn’t care. I’ll tell you one thing; Abraham sits there and stares at that disappointing maple tree. The Lincoln memorial is amazing, beautiful, crafty, and famous. The story behind it you now know. Pass it on, don’t let it go. |