My wildest dream-- time travel is possible. I had an afternoon (one of what I hope will be many) with three of my favorite all time heroines. Tanaquil, 700bc Etruscan princess; Julia 1st century bc/ad daughter of the emperor Augustus: Cartimandua 1st century ad ruler of the Celtic tribe, the Brigantes. From different times in history, varied stations in life, different religions-- we had little in common. Or did we?
As trite as it may sound on our first meeting we talked of our first loves. Or in some cases our only loves. Julia was effusive. Although she was in a marriage arranged by her father for political reasons, she reveled in her marriage to her cousin, Marcellus.
"I liked his company for he was full of fun, far removed from the stodgy ways of so many people around my father. Any number of whom my father might consider as a mate for me if he needed it. But he was set on his nephew succeeding him. I liked the idea of one day being married to the emperor.I have to admit it was the sex that was wowing. He was my first. I suppose they are always special. To be honest I think it was my step mother's objection that did it. Livia was so power hungry and so 'her family' concerned that she was determined to have one of her sons succeed my father. Drusus, the younger, didn't like me very much. And the older one, Tiberius was so ---" She was silent so long that we all thought she had forgotten we were there. Finally she said, "so dour, yes that's the word."
"So you loved Marcellus?" I asked
She tossed her head, flicking her hair in a most annoying manner, laughed and then fell serious. "Love him? You," she said to me "live in the wrong time or the wrong place or both. This love thing-- what is it? How does one describe it?"
I barely began to answer when Tanaquil interrupted. "Or maybe it was you, Julia, who lived in the wrong time or place. I know this-- what did you call it -- This love thing."
"Pray, do tell us then," Julia said as she plopped yet another piece of cheese in her mouth.
Tanaquil's eyes focused on the space behind Cartimandua. A faint smile, closed eyes, and a heavy sigh. "It was the first time I was allowed to move around the arena by myself. It was a wrestling match. My best friend who had agreed to sit with me abandoned me as soon as we were out sight of our parents. and went with her would-be boyfriend. Wandering down a row of seats looking for someone to sit with I tripped and fell into the lap --" She paused. "Of the most handsome man I had ever seen. By the end of the wrestling matches I was hopelessly and forever in love with an utterly unacceptable man."
"But we all know he was to be king of Rome. How unacceptable can that be?" Julia asked.
"But not an prince in Etruria. Despite his charm, and he was charming, and his wealth, and he was fabulously wealthy, --despite all that I had fallen for an alien, and in the end I married the alien. You must know what that meant. But I was not to be done in by it. I refused to let myself and the man I married be relegated to second-calss citizenship. Together we left Tarquinia for the wilds of Rome-- a mud hut village at the time. That Julia is the 'love thing'."
Julia's lilting laugh was infectious. Cartimandua finally held up her hand to halt the laughter. "My love thing came late-- if it was a love thing. I can't imagine you'll find it of much comparison to what we just heard. It was my husband's armor bearer-- his second self, you might say. I used him as a spy when things were touchy between my husband and me. I used him for sport when I needed entertaining. I used him for revenge when I wanted to hurt my husband. He was more a sex thing than a love thing. Had things turned out differently in the political road I took, or had I never taken that road, who knows if my love might have been my husband." Cartimandua turned to Julia. "Had I never had to deal with your nephew or cousin or somthing of that nature. Had I never had to deal with Claudius and his men."
Julia erupted in laughter. "Claudius? You mean Cla-cla-claudius? Are we going to have a lot to talk about. Politics-- the glorious wicked world of politics. But not today, ladies. Not today. Today let's part with the love thing on our minds." Suddenly she caught her head in her hands. "Oh how rude I have been. You, Jewellee, tell us about your first love."
"Next time. There will be a next time?" We agreed to meet again and again in the future. You're all invited to join us.
To visit the biographies of these women, go to IONICBOOKS
