Atalanta was a very different sort of woman for her time period.
This mythical Greek heroine was athletic, independent, and
skilled in boar hunting and other male sports.
When the time came
for her to marry, she told her father that she would only marry
the man who could beat her in a footrace. Her intent, of course,
was not to marry at all, as no man could run faster than she.
Suitors came from far away to compete for her hand in marriage,
even though they understood that by doing so they were risking
their lives. The rules were simple: win the race and win
Atalanta. Lose the race and lose your life. Many men died.
One, however, was smart enough to pray for the assistance of
Aphrodite, the goddess of love. Aphrodite gave him three golden
apples and each time Atalanta pulled far ahead of him in the
race, he would throw one of the apples and she would stop to pick
it up, feeling that she was so much faster that picking up the
golden fruit wouldn't matter.
It did. She lost the race, but
gained a husband that she secretly loved and admired. Inspirational Posters
Paralumun New Age Village