Herodotus, “The Father of History”
I got caught in a heavy rain today; and as I huddled under my umbrella, an incident of history crept into my mind. It was first reported by Herodotus–aka “The Father of History” to some, “The Father of Lies” to others–and later adapted by Livy, who changed some of the details. But the point of the story did not change.
The tyrant of Syracuse wished to pass on his power to his son; but his son said, “How am I to rule this country, father? I don’t know!”
“Come with me,” said the tyrant. “I’ll show you.”
He led his son out of the city, stopping in a poppy field. There he took his cane and began to lop off the heads of all poppies that had grown to a certain point.
“That’s how you rule Syracuse,” he said. “Anyone who grows too high, you cut him down.”
Some things never change. Donald Trump would understand this lesson: he’s getting the royal poppy treatment.
