Throwback: Narcissus and Echo

Amanda Weldin (0:01)

Hello. Welcome to Stories Podcast. I'm your host, Amanda Weldon. Today's story is a throwback episode. Tune in to hear one of our classic stories from the archive that you might have missed the first time around.

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Thanks. Enjoy the episode.

Narcissus and Echo.

Once upon a time in ancient Greece, there was a young man named Narcissus. From the minute he was born, it was clear to everyone that he was no normal baby. The ancient gods of Mount Olympus had gifted him with a beauty beyond measure. He was the cutest baby anyone had ever seen, and his cheeks were nearly perpetually pink from all the pinching. As he got older, he only grew more beautiful. His hair was the gentle tumble of a hidden waterfall over golden stones. His eyes were piercing moons that set sway to the tides of your mind. His smile was pure and bright and radiant, like the hot white sun of a midsummer's day flooding you with warmth. Yes, young Narcissus was blessed by the gods with beauty, but if you're not careful, even a blessing can turn into a curse. For Narcissus, it started when he was just a teen. People noticed his beauty. They wanted to be married to him. They wanted to be him. They just wanted to be close to him and to make him happy. Unfortunately, all of that positive attention went right to his head. Before long, Narcissus was convinced that not only was he a beautiful, handsome, strapping image of a man, he was the most beautiful, the most handsome, and that he was simply the God's gift to the world. People would ask him to be friends, to walk with them in the woods or play with them at their games, and Narcissus would laugh in their faces.

Dan Hinds (4:06)

You want me to play with you?

Amanda Weldin (4:09)

He would say, I'm a work of art and you're just, well, you.

Enjoy my beauty from afar, shout your praises, but don't come too close, or else I'll have to see how much uglier you all are and it will ruin my day.

This was, of course, a terribly rude way to behave, but because Narcissus was so incredibly beautiful, he usually managed to get away with it. This is a thing that happens sometimes and it's not fair. But don't worry, in this case, bad behavior will not be tolerated for long. For Narcissus, it was one long summer when he couldn't get any rest. Everywhere he went, people called out to him. Narcissus, marry me. Narcissus, let me sculpt you.

Dan Hinds (5:00)

Narcissus, let me just have a kiss and I can die a happy man.

Amanda Weldin (5:05)

On and on they came, and as much as Narcissus loved to be admired, he hated the common people. To him, it was just wildly unfair that he had to look at their average faces while they got to stare at an absolute, one-of-a-kind, genuine work of art. In his mind, he decided a perfect world would be populated by him and him alone, beautiful and perfect without anyone to bother him. But seeing as that was impossible, Narcissus decided to take a break.