Here is a prayer to Vesta, adapted from an ancient Homeric hymn:

Fire has long been a holy symbol, a symbol of the soul, of eternity and the divine. Fire worship is one of the earliest forms of religion known to humankind – one can almost imagine our ancient ancestors marveling at the sight of a red ember crackling out of a fire and flying up and away into the black night sky. It just sparks a sense of reverence, doesn’t it? We are no different today when we light a candle and gaze into the flame, seeking answers, peace and comfort.

Here’s an amazing item (from my collection) that I’d like to share with you. It’s the press photo taken shortly after the excavation of the tomb of the Vestal Cossinia in Tivoli, Italy, around 1930. This esteemed and beloved priestess served the goddess for sixty-six years.

From books to movies, television shows to video games, it seems that Cleopatra just can’t catch a break.  Popular culture still insists on depicting her as the so-called “Whore of the Nile,” thus perpetuating the smear campaign started by Octavian after he defeated her (and Marc Antony) some two millennia ago.