God of Love

Life can certainly be a lot of fun for men and women everywhere if they allow inhibitions to drop. American men and women especially. I feel bad for those people sometimes. They're at war with each other and the rest of the world instead of celebrating peace and love like they're supposed to. No wonder Americans have more crime than any other place on the planet. These people aren't getting enough of the right kind of action!

It's gotten real bad. A guy can't make a compliment to a female co-worker without her screaming harassment. A man can't look at another man too long without risk getting hit in the face because the other man is afraid he might be gay and have some sordid intentions. What a world! The land of the free is also the home of the most sexually repressed people on the planet.

That's okay, though. My name is Eros and I've come to help out these people. For those of you who don't know me, I am the Greek god of Love and Lust. I am the son of Ares, god of War and Aphrodite, goddess of Love. My grandfather is Zeus, the Bearer of Lightning and Lord of Mount Olympus. A long time ago, the gods of Ancient Greece decided to leave the planet Earth and move elsewhere. They were getting bored. Now, thousands of years later, the humans have forgotten about us and they've made a mess of things. The other gods have given up on mankind. They've abandoned the humans to their own fate. There are many gods out there who wish the humans harm. Hades, god of the Underworld is one of them. He's a misanthrope of the worst caliber. His assistant Thanatos, the god of Death is another misanthrope. Persephone, the lovely goddess Hades married was killed a long time ago by a Titan and since that day, Hades has been filled with hatred.

Other gods who wish the humans harm are Ares, god of War and Artemis, the goddess of Vengeance. Those two have hated each other for eons and they've been fighting a war against one another for eternity. Artemis hates men in general. She's a misandrist. What she loves doing is turning women against men. Ever see a man-hating girl around your college campus? Odds are, she was inspired by one of Artemis' lackeys. Artemis has these lackeys working for her. They're called Succubi. Succubi are female demons. Unlike the Succubi of legend, they're not nymphomaniacs interested in seducing random men in their sleep. Succubi drive men to the brink of despair and madness. They've destroyed the lives of countless men over the eons. The Succubi answer only to Artemis. If Artemis has her way, all men living on the planet will perish and the women will inherit the earth. That's her idea of Utopia. Fortunately for men everywhere, Ares opposes her. The god of War constantly battles the schemes of Artemis. Sometimes he wins, sometimes he loses. He is very strong and wields tremendous power but the forces of Artemis are far more numerous. In the twenty first century, with the advent of the women's movement, a lot of women learned to hate men. Such attitudes were encouraged by feminists worldwide, particularly Americans. These days, the Justice System of America was very much gender-biased...against men. Men get screwed in divorce cases. Men end up in jail due to false allegations of lord knows what made by vindictive women. There are fewer and fewer male students graduating from high schools and colleges. America is turning into a female-dominated society and let me tell you, hate-filled women are a lot worse than their male counterparts can ever be.

The mortal agents of Ares are the many men and few women of the Men's rights movement, which is spread all over the world. These brave people try to spread awareness of men's issues but the media, in the hands of misandrists, refuses to pay them heed. A lot of American men have learned to accept that their gender is constantly harassed and ridiculed on television, at work and everywhere else. Male values are ridiculed. Yes indeed, men are in trouble. America is the worst place of all for men. Unfortunately, most American men don't seem to know this or care. They refuse to unite against misandry and instead continue to bury their heads in the sand. Unfortunately for them, pretending a problem isn't there won't make it go away. Ares and his people are brave but they're fighting a losing battle. It would take a miracle to save them.

Fortunately, I am very familiar with miracles and I've caused quite a few. My father Ares is the macho God of War. He's very strong and powerful but not very shrewd or subtle. Fortunately, I am different. My mother Aphrodite was a very shrewd lady and she taught me well. My uncle Hermes, the god of Thieves taught me how to be crafty. My aunt Athena, goddess of Wisdom and War taught me how to be one tough son of a gun when I had to be. Most gods don't take me too seriously. I am Eros, the openly bisexual God of Love. I am the one who sleeps with both men and women and doesn't hide his passions from anyone. I am the original liberal, after all. I have a plan to save humanity from itself. I am going to end the Battle of the Sexes by getting men and women to stop being enemies and instead become lovers and friends.

This task is easier said than done. I flew down to Earth and took a look around the world of man. I saw many wonders and horrors. I looked at the humans. What I saw amazed me. I saw a magnificent story unfold. The story of a young man named Sean Leander who was one of his high school wrestling team's top athletes. Sean was a young man who came from a poor family. He was a nice guy and a good student. He was very determined to succeed. At the age of eighteen came one of the toughest challenges of his life. Sean Leander had to face an eighteen-year-old female wrestler named Doris Richards. Doris Richards was the only female wrestler on her high school's all-male wrestling squad. She was also one of the best athletes at her school. Doris Richards made a name for herself by defeating most of her opponents, usually men but sometimes women, during her final wrestling season in high school. They were fated to face each other at the state wrestling championships that year.

In an ideal world, those two could have been friends. I think most sports fans would agree that there should be separate leagues for male and female athletes. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way sometimes. Sean Leander and Doris Richards were destined to face each other. Both were outstanding athletes, honor roll students and also decent young people. Both carried the hopes of their schools on their young shoulders. Doris was by far the most popular. Young women across the country knew her name and saw her as their hero. Sean Leander was known to be a good wrestler but he wasn't widely famous, hadn't been on television and magazines and he was basically a simple soul. He loved wrestling and excelled at it. He saw himself as a regular guy. Doris Richards saw herself as a hero for women everywhere and she loved beating her male opponents. She was fiercely determined to win and was feared throughout the country.

The final match was watched by millions of people across the country. It was also watched by the god Ares and his enemy, the goddess Artemis. Of course, I watched it too. Sean Leander went against Doris Richards. Both were strong but she was faster and more agile. He had more technique and that's how he defeated her. It wasn't easy but he won. Millions of women openly voiced their disappointment. They wanted the girl wrestler to win. Millions of men silently rejoiced. Deep inside, men usually side with men and no man wants to lose to a woman in any contest.

Artemis was enraged by the results of the match and probably would have tried to smite the male champion for defeating the female contender but Ares stood in her way. Stopping an enraged female is never easy. Ask any man. Stopping an enraged goddess isn't any easier. Artemis went against Ares with everything she had. The vengeful goddess hurled her spears of fire at the god of War but he blocked them with his mighty shield and thrust his sword at her. He wounded her. Enraged, Artemis fled. She decided to take her fury out on her brother Apollo, the mild-mannered god of the Sun. Apollo is tall, handsome and physically powerful but at heart, he is not a fighter. Fortunately, the mighty Hercules came to his rescue. Hercules was a magnificent demigod during his days as a human. When he became a god, I rejoiced. He is the physically strongest being in the universe. His might nearly rivals that of Zeus, the Lord of the Gods himself.

The only other god whose magnificence and power equals that of Hercules is Thor, the Norse god of Thunder. Fortunately, Thor and Hercules are good fellows and even better friends. I can recall times when Hercules and Thor teamed up to deal with forces which threatened but the Olympians and the Norse deities. Hercules saved Apollo that day. That day, I went to my aunt Athena for some advice. Athena is tall and beautiful, but she is also powerful and wise. She's not a crazy woman and she's smarter than most deities I know. All Olympians value her wisdom. I told her of the situation between men and women on earth, which mirrored the conflict between Ares and Artemis. Athena listened to my worried spiel. Then, she gave me some sound advice. The only way to end the battle of the sexes was love.

I thought about going to Ares and Artemis with that statement. They should stop fighting and encourage their different followers to mend their differences. Radical Feminists and Men's Rights Activists should learn to compromise and cull their separatist views. I knew what they would say. They would laugh at me. Gods and humans are really not that different. Both can be petty and cruel.

I flew down to earth and that's when I saw something which amazed me. I watched a man named Paul Jenkins meet a woman named Monique Brown. Paul was a professional football player, and Monique was a lawyer. They became friends and later fell in love. Three years after their first meeting, they got married. It's not an uncommon story. Still, there were a lot of problems in that marriage.

Monique was a busy career woman and her husband Paul was often busy traveling with his team. Their marriage deteriorated and things got worse when Paul lost his spot on the football team he played for. He was a man used to the life and power of a highly successful professional athlete. He was not used to not having fame and adoration. He didn't receive any support from his wife and they got divorced. They fought tooth and nail over their assets, worth five million in total.

As was often the case in America, the wife screwed the husband over in court. Oh, Paul wasn't poor. He didn't have to pay his wife any alimony and they didn't have any kids. He walked away with three million and she walked away with two, since they settled out of court. Attorney fees for each of them were evaluated to be five hundred grand each. Nice, huh?

Monique Brown was wealthy and she started her own law firm. She had suddenly become one of the city's most eligible women. Paul Jenkins was not in such good shape. The injury which cost him his spot on the football team, and also his divorce, were serious blows to his psyche. He thought Monique loved him but she turned out to be a manipulative gold-digger who took away a good chunk of his money. He vowed never to marry again. He no longer trusted women. A lot of people lost faith in the opposite sex after being hurt in a relationship. That's unfortunate but true.

I didn't think there was any hope for those two, but I've been wrong before. Jennifer Albert is a construction worker with a drinking problem. She also had issues with her police officer boyfriend, Louis Anders. Louis Anders was fed up with his girlfriend's accusations and wild ways. She thought he was cheating on her with another woman. He wasn't cheating but he felt like leaving her since she made life hell for him with her outbursts of verbal abuse. He didn't need such drama in his life, so one day he left. Jennifer Albert felt wracked with guilt over driving her boyfriend away. She cared for him and now felt remorseful about how she treated him. Unfortunately, the only way she knew how to drown her sorrows was with alcohol. So she drank and did the worst thing she could have done after drinking. She went for a drive through the streets of Boston.

Paul was walking through the park, musing over his life. He had begun a new career as a sports agent and was doing okay for himself. He was trying really hard to forget about Monique. He'd had a few one-night stands since they split and was afraid of starting a new relationship. He thought all women were out to get his money and hurt him along the way. He was a very lonely man.

While he was walking through the park, he was unaware of someone looking at him. Nicole Benson was a second-generation firefighter who had started a new job at a nearby fire station. Her father was the deputy fire chief and most of her co-workers were men whom she had known a long time and got along with. She was finally doing what she really loved, as opposed to the career everyone had wanted for her. She went to school for business administration but what she really wanted to do was become a firefighter. Finally, she was in! All was right with the world. Well, almost everything. She had been quite lonely since her last boyfriend Kyle moved to Atlanta. She hadn't been with anyone since.

While jogging through the park, she saw a very handsome man. She recognized him instantly. He was the famous ex- football player Paul Jenkins. She approached him, and tried to make conversation. Paul looked at the young woman who approached him. She was tall and athletic, kind of good-looking. He smiled. She had nice eyes, too. They talked for a moment, before he excused himself. She seemed nice and all but he wasn't looking for anything at the moment, thank you very much. He excused himself, and went his own way. The young woman watched him walk away, incredulous and disappointed. She shook her head. What was his problem? What she didn't know was that the handsome football stud was a man suffering from a broken heart. And he didn't let women get too close because he didn't want to be hurt again.

Paul Jenkins kept walking. So absorbed was he into his thoughts that he didn't see the car coming at him until it was almost too late. The car was driven by Jennifer Albert, operating a vehicle while on her fifth beer. Paul watched the car bearing down on him, and froze. He saw death come for him. A few dozen feet away, Nicole Benson also saw the car coming. She saw Paul Jenkins standing there, frozen. She knew just what to do. She rushed toward him, and body-slammed him, knocking them both out of the car's way. The car slammed into a tree, then stopped. The driver slumped over the wheel. Motionless.

Paul Jenkins breathed, surprised to find himself still alive. He looked at the young woman who lay next to him. It was the same young woman who had spoken to him earlier, the one he had walked away from. Nicole Benson winked at him, then gave him a hand up. Surprised, he took it. Both of them looked at each other, and he thanked her. She shrugged, then turned to look at the car. It was a wreck.

A few minutes later, the fire department arrived, to find one of their own already on the scene. Nicole spoke to her co-workers, the men of the fire station. She explained what happened. They moved toward the car. A police car and an ambulance arrived shortly after. Two officers came out, a tall black man and a slim white woman with short hair. One of the officers in the car was officer Louis Anders. The man went pale when he saw whose car it was. He rushed toward it like a desperate man. His partner gently restrained him from hurting himself.

He was pacing in front of it, watching as the EMT people did their job. They took the body of his still-living ex-girlfriend from the car. Her eyes were open and she was looking at him. Gently, he squeezed her hand. She smiled weakly. Jennifer Albert had been dazed when the car hit the tree. She had swerved, trying to avoid hitting the people in the park but couldn't. Then all went dark as the car hit the tree. She woke up moments later as the EMT people pulled her out. She looked at her boyfriend, the officer on the scene. There was so much she wanted to apologize for, so much she wanted to say. She hoped that she would get the chance, someday.

Paul Jenkins looked at Nicole Benson as she interacted with the police officers and the EMT people as well as the firefighters. He gathered that she was one of them. She seemed to know her way around handling a crisis. He watched, impressed. Nicole turned around, seeing the man whom she had spoken to earlier. He was looking at her with new respect in his eyes. She smiled. He was kind of cute. Maybe when all this was over they could go for coffee or something. Maybe. He smiled back at her. Oh, yeah. Definitely.

I decided to follow these people, and watch what happened in their lives. Jennifer Albert was hospitalized for six weeks and had her license suspended for a year. She also checked into rehab. Her ex-boyfriend Louis Anders stood by her side the whole time. They remained friends, though they decided that it would be best if they sought romance with other people. They eventually moved on with their lives. Louis Anders embarked on a relationship with Stephanie Haley, the police officer who was in the car with him during his ex-girlfriend's drunk driving incident. The two of them had worked together for years and been friends but Stephanie had had feelings for Louis for a long time. Now that he was single, she finally got the courage to reveal her feelings. Thus it was that those two friends found love with each other.

As for Paul Jenkins, the night after the incident in the park, he went home, shocked. Not by how close he came to dying but so impressed was he by the young woman who saved his life that he couldn't forget her. He went by the fire house, where the men greeted him happily. He was a former pro footballer after all and a hero to many of them. They exchanged pleasantries and he thought they were a great bunch of guys but he had eyes only for the sole female in their midst, though. Nicole Benson. He asked her out for coffee and she accepted. Thus, they became friends and later, much more than friends. All I can is that they are together and quite happy.

I watched the humans interacting with each other. I watched men and women making silly mistakes and threatening to end each other's brief lives. I saw their capacity for vengeance and destruction. I also saw their bravery and courage. Both men and women are capable of such great acts of bravery, courage, love and even self-sacrifice. It's amazing. They are such a complex race but I wouldn't have them any other way. I see now the wisdom of my fellow Olympian. Love is the only way to end the conflict of the Battle of The Sexes, which has pitted women against men. I look forward to a day when they will put aside their differences and embrace each other not just as friends and true equals but also as lovers.