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for song: once there was a man named pygmalion. according to legend, he lived on the island where aphrodite, the goddess of love, first set foot. he was a great sculptor, but he lived in a shack, alone, with no company but his statues. he was fine with that. he would say" what more could i want in a friend? they listen to me, there always there for me, and they never do anything to upset me." he never had to work, and he only sold enough of his art to survive, and to buy more marble for his statues. he could have been a rich man, but he had no real interest in money. he also would not take a wife. this angered the mothers of this island, for the mothers would not accept a man who lived on the island of the goddess of love, aphrodite, and would not marry one of their daughters. the mothers would say things like "my penelope would shape him up! she would clean up that filthy shack and make it suitable for a family." or they would say "my daughter would make sure he got the right price for those statues of his!" but pygmalion ignored them, which angered the women even more.they went to the temple of aphrodite, and gave offerings to the goddess and prayed that aphrodite would cause him to take a wife. aphrodite heard their pleas, and so she went to pygmalion in a dream and said "the women of my island wish for you to take a wife." pygmalion saw that she was a goddess, and looked away, then aphrodite said "yes, i am a goddess, but fear not, i come only to tell you that you must choose a wife." pygmalion said "you ae a goddess, so i will obey you, but i must ask one thing of you." aphrodite replied" what would you ask of me, mortal?" to which pygmalion said" having seen you, i am in awe of your beauty, and i wish to capture your image in one of mt statues" aphrodite was a goddess, but she was also a woman, and she could not resist this flattery. "you may make a statue in my image, but when it has been completed, you must choose a wife." to this, pygmalion said "i will obey " so from that night on, the goddess would appear in pygmalions dreams, in different poses and outfits, all of which pygmalion would replicate, in the form of miniature clay figurines. he would say to the goddess "i must study you from every angle, in every stance before i can make a statue worthy of your beauty." but in truth, pygmalion was stalling so that he would not have to choose a wife. aphrodite saw this, and ignored it at first, for it was not often that a goddess could come to earth and be revered for her beauty, but the more the mothers of the island prayed, the harder it was for aphrodite to ignore them. these were her people. so one day, pygmalion looked at the giant block of marble he intended to use for his great statue, and was inspired as he had never been before. the chisel in his hand was like an extension of his arm, as was his hammer. he tried to stop working, for if he completed the statue to soon, he might never see aphrodite again, and would have to choose a wife. he did not want this, and yet he could not stop working. he knew that aphrodite had at last chosen to take heed of the mothers, and that she had instilled in him this great desire to create.within days, the statue was completed, and it was greater than any of those before it.finally aphrodite visited pygmalion in front of the statue and said"see pygmalion, your statue has been completed, and i am well pleased, it is a great likeness of me. i have come to like you very much, dear pygmalion, so you may choose any woman you wish, and i will cause her to love you, and you alone. to this pygmalion said"i would have only one woman" then aphrodite asked" who would you have?" pygmalion replied " i would have you, for how could i desire a mortal woman, after seeing you in all your beauty and splendor?" but aphrodite said "it cannot be" this upset pygmalion greatly, but then he said"then i wish that you would give life to this statue, which has been created in your image."aphrodite was flattered, but replied" it cannot be, she is but a statue" then pygmalion said" but you are a goddess, can you not give her life? for i tell you, she is no statue, my hands shaped her, and my blood went into her making. i have given her my life, can you not give her her own? aphrodite said "i cannot" then pygmalion said" then i wish only to become one with her. see, i stand upon this pedestal, and i hold her in my arms.can you not turn me to stone, so that i may be with her forever?" then aphrodite replied" you would die!" but pygmalion would not relent, saying" without her, i am already dead, for i do not wish to live without her by my side" aphrodite, seeing that her beauty could still drive men to such things, finally said"hold her tightly, and i shall grant your wish." so pygmalion held the statue, as one would hold a lover, and kissed her. he then felt warmth on her lips, a pulse in her veins, and he opened his eyes, and saw that the statue was gone, and he was holding a beautiful women in its likeness.then aphrodite said to them"i have given you the wife you desired, and her name is galatea. now take those clay figurines, and place them inn my temple, as offerings, for i fear that i will recieve no offerings from the mothers of this island for a for a long time.pygmalion and galatea thanked aphrodite, who then disappeared, as galatea said "now dear husband, it is time for ME to work on YOU."
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