9 The Phaeacians Send Odysseus Home

CHAPTER 9 The Phaeacians Send Odysseus Home The king, the queen, and the rest of the court clapped after Odysseus finished his stories. It was hard to believe he had been through so much and survived. Odysseus was indeed as brave and strong as legend said he was. "Odysseus," said the king, "I think we all agree that you have been through enough. Soon you will leave Phaeacia to sail to Ithaca. You will take many gifts with you."

The evening before Odysseus was to sail away, the king held a farewell banquet in the hero's honor. Even as he ate with the kind Phaeacians, Odysseus looked toward the sun. He wanted to speed its setting. He longed to be on his way home. In the morning, Odysseus and his Phaeacian crew boarded a great ship. Once it set sail, the ship bounded forward like an eager racehorse. The front curved like the neck of a beautiful stallion. The ship left a great wave of dark blue water in its wake as it moved gracefully and smoothly over the sea. The Phaeacians proudly sailed the ship toward Ithaca, Odysseus's home. Odysseus slept soundly the whole way, dreaming of Penelope and Telemachus. When they reached the Ithacan shore, the Phaeacians did not wake Odysseus. They gently lifted him off the ship and laid him down under an olive tree. Odysseus would be

hidden there until he woke up. The men arranged all the king's gifts on the ground around Odysseus. Then they left to sail back home. Poseidon saw the Phaeacian ship leaving Ithaca. The sea god knew it had brought Odysseus home. Poseidon felt the Phaeacians had disrespected him by helping Odysseus. He followed the ship back to Phaeacia. Just as it sailed into harbor, Poseidon turned the whole ship into stone. It then plunged to the bottom of the sea. The sea god wanted to teach the Phaeacians a lesson about disrespecting the gods. In fact, he did. The Phaeacian people saw it all happen. They never again showed kindness to any stranger passing through their land. When Odysseus woke, he didn't know where he was. He had been away for so long that he didn't even know his own home. Just

as he always did when arriving somewhere new, he wondered, What will the people of this place be like? He looked around at the gifts the Phaeacians had given him. There were gold goblets, well-crafted jugs, and beautiful blankets. He searched for someplace to hide his treasure. At that moment, Athena came to him. She was disguised as a young shepherd. "My friend," said Odysseus, "you are the first person I have met in this new country. Can you tell me where I am?" The shepherd told him he was in Ithaca. Odysseus was used to lying to strangers about who he really was. He automatically said, "Oh, yes! Ithaca—I have heard of that place." Athena smiled and turned back into her goddess form. She joked with him. "Odysseus," she asked, "won't you ever stop

your tricks? You do not have to lie to protect yourself. It is me, Athena! I have been keeping watch over you during your journey." "You are one to speak about lying," he teased her back. "You are always in disguises! And where were you before I reached the Phaeacians? Where were you when I was suffering? Is this some kind of trick now? Or am I finally back in Ithaca?" "I am very sorry for your suffering," Athena said. "I did not want to anger Poseidon. He still wants revenge upon you for blinding his son. But let me make it up to you now." Athena helped Odysseus finish hiding the Phaeacians' gifts. "Now," Athena went on, "I will help you come up with a plan for you to return home. I will help you face those wicked suitors." First, they decided, Odysseus was to tell no

one else his true identity. No one should know he had returned to Ithaca. To make this easier, Athena disguised Odysseus as an old beggar man. She covered his body with wrinkles. She made his blond hair disappear so he looked bald. Athena turned his clothes to rags, then sent him to his own home. When he got there, he was to speak to his loyal old swineherd. This man lived in a small house on Odysseus's property. In the meantime, Athena would go to Sparta to see Telemachus. It was time for him to stop searching for his father and come home. "My family doesn't know I am alive," Odysseus suddenly realized. "I cannot wait to see my wife and son. Please, Athena, bring me to them now!" "No, you must stay in disguise until I tell you to reveal your true identity," Athena