Demeter and Persephone
the story of Demeter and Persephone
by Sophie Oxford
Demeter was the Goddess of fertility and agriculture. She was an important Goddess for farmers and also women. Demeter was associated with the underworld. she was the sister of Zeus and was also in charge of the harvest. if Demeter was upset all the crops could die, all of the Gods and mortals worked hard to keep her happy. The one thing that made her happy the most was her daughter, Persephone.
One day Persephone was picking flowers when Hades her uncle God of the underworld noticed Persephone. Hades was usually gloomy, but Persephone's beauty dazzled him. He fell in love with her. So Hades kidnapped her and took Persephone to the underworld.
Back on Earth Demeter was terribly unhappy. She missed her daughter, and soon all the crops started dying. Zeus was very worried about the crops because if all the crops died the people would die as well. So Zeus decided to send Hermes his youngest son, the messenger down into the underworld to make a deal with Hades. The deal made with Hades was that Persephone would marry Hades and she would be queen of the underworld for six months of each year. but every Spring, Persephone would return and live on Earth for six months of each year. They all agreed to this plan including Demeter. so every Spring when Persephone returned to Earth Demeter would make sure all the flowers bloomed in her welcome. But when Persephone returned to the underworld, Demeter would let all the flowers and crops die until Spring, when Persephone would return to her.