Hephaestus

Both were neglected at birth.

He by his own mother,

And I, by doctors.

Neglected like this, we began both our lives.

I am quite like Hephaestus.

I was not thrown from a mountain.

But, like he, I am disabled.

Constantly underestimated,  like him;

And both constantly labeled.

Horrible names and dumb assumptions 

Haunting us both, but both made the oath

 to defy expectations.

Hephaestus , Hephaestus 

The lame one, the ingenious, the sooty god.

Both of us are craftsmen of  one kind or other

He made weapons and tools for  his kin:

Hermes’s Shoes, the Armor of Achilles and  Apollo’s arrows.

He made himself indispensable to his Olympian family.

He received his own forge on Olympus.

I consider that success.

We are both determined and full of grit.

We both demanded to be seen.

Striving to be equal to our peers.

It took Hephaestus centuries; for me, it took many years.