When my father, Odysseus, and his men sailed off to the Trojan War, they were confident their gods favored a quick victory. Instead, the siege of Troy lasted ten years. After Troy fell, the survivors made their way home to Sparta, Mycenae, Pylos, and elsewhere in the ancient Peloponnese. Neither my father nor any of his troops arrived home with the rest. We waited for years as the news grew worse. Odysseus was dead, we were told,or imprisoned, or, worst yet, he had married another woman and abandoned my mother Penelope, my brother Telemachus, and me.


If he is alive somewhere, his thoughts may wander to Penelope and Telemachus, but he won’t be thinking of me. I am the daughter he doesn’t know exists. Odysseus went off to the Trojan War when his son, Telemachus, was barely old enough to walk. His wife, Penelope, was a teenage bride, and is now a young wife, mother, and queen who has to try to rule Ithaca without him.


I was born seven months after he left. I am a hero’s daughter and a princess of his realm, but I have lived my entire life without a father. I’m nineteen now, and still waiting.


All over the world, and throughout history children grow up as I have. This website will focus on the children of those men and women who have gone off to fight America's wars, and provide information and resources for all who care about military families and want to help.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Life in Transition

Military children are the focus of the Manitou Springs, Colorado Business of Art Center's Humanities Series beginning Saturday, Oct. 16

The showcase of the exhibition, entitled "Life in Transition," is an art exhibit by military children from kindergarten through high school, The military children were invited to “create art that represents how their lives are different from the children of the general community.  BAC gallery director and curator Liz Szabo said. “This promises to be a moving and thought-provoking show.” 

The opening day of the exhibition also featured performances by theManitou Art Theater and several workshops for children of all ages.  
All exhibits and events are at the BAC, at 515 Manitou Ave. They are free and open to the public through January 15, 2011.
  
Posted by About AART at 7:16 AM

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