Greece - 2407 BC

In the still heat of a tranquil summer’s day, a little boy ran down the weathered stone steps to the beach, and raced across the sand to where the others were playing.

Behind him, the granite cliffs loomed over the water’s edge and a vast cave entrance yawned beneath. Near the entrance, some older boys were climbing up the rock face. The boy thought it looked dangerous.

In the scorching heat, the sea looked inviting as the sun shone directly down onto it; scattering reflections into the young boy’s bright green eyes. A few children were swimming naked in the warm sea, splashing and laughing and occasionally diving below the surface to look for shells. When he reached the small gathering of boys on the beach he saw what they were doing, and he begged to be allowed to join in.

After some teasing and laughing, they let him play the game with them, which involved throwing small stones from behind a line in the sand into a series of concentric rings to score points.

The game went on for most of the day. The other boys were so much better than he that they laughed and jeered at him, accusing him of cheating for no reason other than spite.

Eventually they kicked him and punched his face until he ran away along the beach to sit on his own.

The salty air made the boy’s skin feel dry. He wanted to swim in the sea, to feel the cool wetness.

He stripped out of his cloth and ran towards the sea.