Native American Legends
Blessed gift of joy is bestowed upon Man
A Kanglanek Legend
Once there was a time when men knew no joy. Their whole life was work, food, digestion, and sleep. One day went by like another. They toiled, they slept, they awoke again to toil. Monotony rusted their minds.

In these days there was a man and his wife who lived alone in their dwelling not far from the sea. They had three sons, all spirited lads, anxious to be as good huntsmen as their father, and even before they were full grown they entered into all kinds of activities to make them strong and enduring. And their father and mother felt proud and secure in the thought that the boys would provide for their old age and find them food when they could no longer help themselves.

But it happened that the eldest son, and after a while the second one, went a- hunting and never came back. They left no trace behind; all search was in vain. And the father and mother grieved deeply over their loss and watched now with great anxiety over the youngest boy, who was at this time big enough to accompany his father when he went hunting. The son, who was called Ermine (Teriak) liked best to stalk caribou, whereas his father preferred to hunt sea creatures. And, as hunters cannot spend all their lives in anxiety, it soon came about that the son was allowed to go where he pleased inland while the father rowed to sea in his kayak.

One day, stalking caribou as usual, Ermine suddenly caught sight of a mighty eagle, a big young eagle that circled over him. Ermine pulled out his arrows, but did not shoot as the eagle flew down and settled on the ground a short distance from him. Here it took off its hood and became a young man who said to the boy:

"It was I who killed your two brothers. I will kill you too unless you promise to hold a festival of song when you get home. Will you or won't you?"

"Gladly, but I don't understand what you say. What is song? What is a festival?"

"Will you or won't you?"

"Gladly, but I don't know what it is."

"If you follow me my mother will teach you what you don't understand. Your two brothers scorned the gifts of song and merrymaking; they would not learn, so I killed them. Now you may come with me, and as soon as you have learned to put words together into a song and to sing it--as soon as you have learned to dance for joy, you shall be free to go home to your dwelling."

"I'll come with you," answered Ermine. And off they set.

The eagle was no longer a bird but a big strong man in a gleaming cloak of eagles' feathers. They walked and they walked, farther and farther inland, through gorges and valleys, onward to a high mountain, which they began to climb.

"High up on that mountain top stands our house," said the young eagle. And they clambered on over the mountain, up and up until they had a wide view over the plains of the Caribou hunters.

But as they approached the crest of the mountain, they suddenly heard a throbbing sound, which grew louder and louder the nearer they came to the top. It sounded like the stroke of huge hammers, and so loud was the noise that it set Ermine's ears a- humming.

"Do you hear anything?" asked the eagle.

"Yes, a strange deafening noise, that isn't like anything I've ever heard before."

"It is the beating of my mother's heart," answered the eagle.

So they approached the eagle's house, that was built right on the uttermost peaks.

"Wait here until I come back. I must prepare my mother," said the eagle, and went in.

A moment after, he came back and fetched Ermine. They entered a big room, fashioned like the dwellings of men, and on the bunk, quite alone, sat the eagle's mother, aged, feeble, and sad. Her son now said:

"Here's a man who has promised to hold a song festival when he gets home. But he says men don't understand how to put words together into songs, nor even how to beat drums and dance for joy. Mother, men don't know how to make merry, and now this young man has come up here to learn."

This speech brought fresh life to the feeble old mother eagle, and her tired eyes lit up suddenly while she said:

"First you must build a feast hall where many men may gather."

So the two young men set to work and built the feast hall, which is called a kagsse and is larger and finer than ordinary houses. And when it was finished the mother eagle taught them to put words together into songs and to add tones to the words so that they could be sung. She made a drum and taught them to beat upon it in rhythm with the music, and she showed them how they should dance to the songs. When Ermine had learned all this she said:

"Before every festival you must collect much meat, and then call together many men. This you must do after you have built your feast hall and made your songs. For when men assemble for a festival they require sumptuous meals."

"But we know of no men but ourselves," answered Ermine.

"Men are lonely, because they have not yet received the gift of joy," said the mother eagle. "Make all your preparations as I have told you. When all is ready you shall go out and seek for men. You will meet them in couples. Gather them until they are many in number and invite them to come with you. Then hold your festival of song."

Thus spoke the old mother eagle, and when she had minutely instructed Ermine in what he should do, she finally said to him:

"I may be an eagle, yet I am also an aged woman with the same pleasures as other women. A gift calls for a return, therefore it is only fitting that in farewell you should give me a little sinew string. It will be but a slight return, yet it will give me pleasure."

Ermine was at first miserable, for wherever was he to procure sinew string so far from his home? But suddenly he remembered that his arrowheads were lashed to the shafts with sinew string. He unwound these and gave the string to the eagle. Thus was his return gift only a trifling matter. Thereupon, the young eagle again drew on his shining cloak and bade his guest bestride his back and put his arms round his neck. Then he threw himself out over the mountainside. A roaring sound was heard around them and Ermine thought his last hour had come. But this lasted only a moment; then the eagle halted and bade him open his eyes. And there they were again at the place where they had met. They had become friends and now they must part, and they bade each other a cordial farewell. Ermine hastened home to his parents and related all his adventures to them, and he concluded his narrative with these words:

"Men are lonely; they live without joy because they don't know how to make merry. Now the eagle has given me the blessed gift of rejoicing, and I have promised to invite all men to share in the gift."

Father and mother listened in surprise to the son's tale and shook their heads incredulously, for he who has never felt his blood glow and his heart throb in exultation cannot imagine such a gift as the eagle's. But the old people dared not gainsay him, for the eagle had already taken two of their sons, and they understood that its word had to be obeyed if they were to keep this last child. So they did all that the eagle had required of them.

A feast hall, matching the eagle's, was built, and the larder was filled with the meat of sea creatures and caribou. Father and son combined joyous words, describing their dearest and deepest memories in songs which they set to music; also they made drums, rumbling tambourines of taut caribou hides with round wooden frames; and to the rhythm of the drum beats that accompanied the songs they moved their arms and legs in frolicsome hops and lively antics. Thus they grew warm both in mind and body, and began to regard everything about them in quite a new light. Many an evening it would happen that they joked and laughed, flippant and full of fun, at a time when they would otherwise have snored with sheer boredom the whole evening through.

As soon as all the preparations were made, Ermine went out to invite people to the festival that was to be held. To his great surprise he discovered that he and his parents were no longer alone as before. Merry men find company. Suddenly he met people everywhere, always in couples, strange looking people, some clad in wolf skins, others in the fur of the wolverine, the lynx, the red fox, the silver fox, the cross fox--in fact, in the skins of all kinds of animals. Ermine invited them to the banquet in his new feast hall and they all followed him joyfully. Then they held their song festival, each producing his own songs. There were laughter, talk, and sound, and people were carefree and happy as they had never been before. The table delicacies were appreciated, gifts of meat were exchanged, friendships were formed, and there were several who gave each other costly gifts of fur. The night passed, and not till the morning light shone into the feast hall did the guests take their leave. Then, as they thronged out of the corridor, they all fell forward on their hands and sprang away on all fours. They were no longer men but had changed into wolves, wolverines, lynxes, silver foxes, red foxes--in fact, into all the beasts of the forest. They were the guests that the old eagle had sent, so that father and son might not seek in vain. So great was the power of joy that it could even change animals into men. Thus animals, who have always been more lighthearted than men, were man's first guests in a feast hall.

A little time after this it chanced that Ermine went hunting and again met the eagle. Immediately it took off its hood and turned into a man, and together they went up to the eagle's home, for the old mother eagle wanted once more to see the man who had held the first song festival for humanity.

Before they had reached the heights, the mother eagle came to thank them, and lo! The feeble old eagle had grown young again.

For when men make merry, all old eagles become young.

The foregoing is related by the old folk from Kanglanek, the land which lies where the forests begin around the source of Colville River. In this strange and unaccountable way, so they say, came to men the gift of joy.

And the eagle became the sacred bird of song, dance and all festivity.

Fire Race
A Karok (Karuk) Legend
A long time ago, only the three Yellow Jacket sisters had fire. Even though other animals froze, the fire was kept from them. Wise Old Coyote, however, devises a plan to steal the fire, and enlists the other animals to help. Coyote diverts the yellow jackets, seizes a burning stick, and runs away. As the yellow jackets chase him, he hands it off to Eagle, who hands it to Mountain Lion. Several hand-offs later, Frog hides a hot coal in his mouth on a river bottom, and the yellow jackets give up. When Frog spits the coal out, Willow Tree swallows it, and Coyote shows the animals how to extract it: by rubbing two sticks together over dry moss. Now that the animals have fire, each night they gather in a circle while the elders tell stories. An meaningful tale which stresses the importance of the natural world and our need to live cooperatively with it.

Warlike Seven
A Lakota Legend
Once seven people went out to make war: the Ashes, the Fire, the Bladder, the Grasshopper, the Dragon Fly, the Fish, and the Turtle.

As they were talking excitedly, waving their fists in violent gestures, a wind came and blew the Ashes away.

"Ho!" cried the others, "he could not fight, this one!"

The six went on running to make war more quickly. They descended a deep valley, the Fire going foremost until they came to a river. The Fire said "Hsss- tchu!" and was gone.

"Ho!" hooted the others, "he could not fight, this one!"

Therefore the five went on the more quickly to make war. They came to a great wood.

While they were going through it, the Bladder was heard to sneer and to say, "He! you should rise above these, brothers." With these words he went upward among the tree-tops; and the thorn apple pricked him. He fell through the branches and was nothing!

"You see this!" said the four, "this one could not fight."

Still the remaining warriors would not turn back. The four went boldly on to make war.

The Grasshopper with his cousin, the Dragon Fly, went foremost. They reached a marshy place, and the mire was very deep. As they waded through the mud, the Grasshopper's legs stuck, and he pulled them off!

He crawled upon a log and wept, "You see me, brothers, I cannot go!"

The Dragon Fly went on, weeping for his cousin. He would not be comforted, for he loved his cousin dearly. The more he grieved, the louder he cried, till his body shook with great violence. He blew his red swollen nose with a loud noise so that his head came off his slender neck, and he was fallen upon the grass.

"You see how it is, said the Fish, lashing his tail impatiently, "these people were not warriors!" "Come!" he said, "let us go on to make war."

Thus the Fish and the Turtle came to a large camp ground.

"Ho!" exclaimed the people of this round village of tipi's, "Who are these little ones? What do they seek?"

Neither of the warriors carried weapons with them, and their unimposing stature misled the curious people. The Fish was spokesman. With a peculiar omission of syllables, he said: "Shu . . . hi pi!"

"Wan! What? What?" clamored eager voices of men and women.

Again the Fish said: "Shu . . . hi pi!"

Everywhere stood young and old with a palm to an ear. Still no one guessed what the Fish had mumbled! From the bewildered crowd witty old Iktomi came forward. "He, listen!" he shouted, rubbing his mischievous palms together, for where there was any trouble brewing, he was always in the midst of it.

"This little strange man says, 'Zuya unhipi! We come to make war!'"

"Uun!" resented the people, suddenly stricken glum.

"Let us kill the silly pair! They can do nothing! They do not know the meaning of the phrase. Let us build a fire and boil them both!"

"If you put us on to boil," said the Fish, "there will be trouble."

"Ho ho!" laughed the village folk. "We shall see." And so they made a fire.

"I have never been so angered!" said the Fish.

The Turtle in a whispered reply said: "We shall die!"

When a pair of strong hands lifted the Fish over the sputtering water, he put his mouth downward. "Whssh!" he said. He blew the water all over the people, so that many were burned and could not see.

Screaming with pain, they ran away. "Oh, what shall we do with these dreadful ones?" they said.

Others exclaimed: "Let us carry them to the lake of muddy water and drown them!"

Instantly they ran with them. They threw the Fish and the Turtle into the lake. Toward the center of the large lake the Turtle dived. There he peeped up out of the water and, waving a hand at the crowd, sang out, "This is where I live!"

The Fish swam hither and thither with such frolicsome darts that his back fin made the water fly. "E Han!" whooped the Fish, "this is where I live!"

"Oh, what have we done!" said the frightened people, "this will be our undoing."

Then a wise chief said: "Iya, the Eater, shall come and swallow the lake!"

So one went running. He brought Iya, the Eater; and Iya drank all day at the lake till his belly was like the earth.

Then the Fish and the Turtle dived into the mud; and Iya said: "They are not in me."

Hearing this the people cried greatly.

Iktomi, wading in the lake had been swallowed like a gnat in the water. Within the great Iya he was looking skyward. So deep was the water in the Eater's stomach that the surface of the swallowed lake almost touched the sky.

"I will go that way," said Iktomi, looking at the concave within arm's reach. He struck his knife upward in the Eater's stomach, and the water falling out drowned those people of the village.

Now when the great water fell into its own bed, the Fish and the Turtle came to the shore.

They went home painted victors and loud-voiced singers.

Native American Legends
As-Ai-Yahal
A Tillamook Legend
As-ai-yahal, the god, lived far up in the country. A long time ago he traveled all over the world. He came down the river and arrived at Natahts. There he gathered clams and mussels. He made a fire and roasted them. When he opened them; he found two animals in each shell. After he had roasted them he began to eat and soon had enough. That made him angry and he said, "Henceforth there shall be only one animal in each shell."

The god came to Tillamook Bay and then went up the river. He had to cross it far up because he had no canoe and the river was deep. He met a number of women who were digging roots. He asked, "What are you doing there?" They replied, "We are digging roots." He said, "I do not like that." He took the roots away and sent them to Clatsop. Ever since that time there have been no roots at Tillamook while at Clatsop they are very plentiful.

He went on and came to a river full of salmon which were clapping their fins together. He caught one of them, threw it ashore, stepped on it, flattening it. It became a flounder. Ever since then flounders have been plentiful at Tillamook while there have been no salmon there.

As-ai-yahal traveled on and came to a house in which he saw people lying around the fire. He asked, "What is the matter? Are you sick?" "No," they replied, "we are starving. East Wind wants to kill us. The river, sea, and beach are frozen over and we cannot get any food."

Then he said, "Can't you make East Wind stop blowing so you can secure food?" He went out of the house and far up the river, which was frozen over. It was so slippery he could hardly stand. He went up the river to meet East Wind and to conquer him. Before he came to the house of East Wind, he took up some pieces of ice which he threw into the river, saying, "Henceforth it shall not be as cold as it is now. Winter shall be a little cold but not very much so. You shall become herring." The ice at once became herring and swam down the river.

As-ai-yahal went on until he reached the house of East Wind. He entered and whistled. He was trembling with cold, but did not go near the fire. He said, "I am so warm I cannot go near the fire." Then he told East Wind he came from a house where they were drying herring.

East Wind said, "Don't say so. It is winter now. There will be no herring for a long time to come."

As-ai-yahal replied, "Don't you believe me? There are plenty of herring outside." He took an icicle which he warmed at the fire. "Look how quickly it boils," he said to East Wind as the ice melted. He made East Wind believe that the melting ice was a herring.

Then East Wind ceased to blow, the ice began to melt, and the people had plenty of food. Until then, it had been winter all the year; now we have both summer and winter.

Walks all over the sky
A Tsimshian Legend
The Tsimshian believe that in the beginning one chief ruled the sky. The chief had two sons and one daughter, and though they lived in peace, there was no light in the sky, and the people and creatures of the Earth lived beneath a canopy of darkness. The chief's children were strong and brave and resourceful, and the chief was grateful for this. The eldest child, a son, loved to flex his muscles. The chief's daughter was also proud of her strength and beauty. The second son was as handsome as his brother and sister, but most of all he loved to use his mind. He often sat quietly, pondering all there was to know in the world.

As the second son thought about the dark world below, he became sad, for he imagined how lovely it might look in light and how pleased the people of the Earth would be to see light. He decided he must somehow bring light to the world.

One day he and his brother set off to gather wood in the sky forest. "Look," said the youngest brother as he bent a slender cedar twig into a ring, the size of a face. As his brother watched, he tied wood all around a twig so that his creation looked like a mask. He placed this mask over his face. "What are you doing?" his brother asked, but without saying a word, the younger brother, wearing his disguise began to walk east.

At that moment the people of the Earth looked up and saw light rising in the east They were amazed by the light but they did not know this was they chief's younger son. He had lighted his mask, and as he moved, the flames burned brighter and brighter. He began to run toward the west, flames shooting up from his mask, lighting the world below. When the boy saw the people of the Earth celebrated his light, he repeated his journey. Each day he ran from east to west, wearing his burning mask, shedding light on the people.

Before long, the tribe assembled a council to talk about the light. They called to the chief of the sky. "We are glad your child has brought light to us," they told him, "but please ask him to slow his pace. He takes the light away too quickly now." The chief called his youngest son and told him of the people's request.

"I must run, father," the boy said. "If I walk too slowly the mask will burn up."

The chief reported back to the people, who were dismayed by this news. "Please, chief, do something. You rule the sky. Surely you can slow your son down."

The chief's daughter was listening. She admired her younger brother and the gift he had brought to the world. She too hoped to bring a gift to the people. "Father, I will slow him down." She said.

The next day, as the boy ran to the east to begin his journey, his sister called to him, "Brother, wait for me," and when he was halfway across the sky, she caught up to him. "Brother," she called as she raced to his side. She reached him and held his arm, stopping him. That is why even today, the sun stops for awhile in the middle of the sky. It is there brother and sister meet each day.

The chief's eldest son saw his father's joy, and the people gratitude, and began to wonder what he might give to the world. One night, as his younger brother, who was called Walks-All-Over-The-Sky, lay down to rest from his long day's journey, the elder son lay awake. When he knew everyone was fast asleep, he rubbed his face with charcoal and set off for the east. While the younger brother slept, his masked face shed light from a smoke hole. The older brother rose into the eastern sky, his charcoal-covered face reflecting the light that came from the smoke hole.

Down on Earth a young child looked up and cried "Look, the sun has risen again!" The people looked up and saw a soft light rising into the sky. They shouted for joy, for though the eldest brother was not as bright as the sun, he eased the darkness of night. The people called him Walking-About-Early.

Time passed, and the children changed the world in other ways. While Walks-All- Over the sky slept, sparks flew from his mouth, and these became stars. After the sky was filled with the sun, moon, and stars, the chief's daughter began to wonder what gift she might create. She wandered westward into the water, where her skirt became soaked as she waded lost in though. That evening she stood by the fire to warm herself and wrung the hem of her wet skirt by the fire. As she did, water dripped onto the flames and a great cloud of steam rose up and floated out across the world. She smiled with happiness, for she now knew she had created fog , which traveled west to east and refreshed the Earth with its cool touch.

"Father, look!" she cried, and the father blessed her. The chief was at peace. Each of his children had offered gifts to the world. Walks- All-Over-The-Sky walked each day, and with his warmth and light he nourished the world. Walking-About-Early rose and set every 30 days, and thus he divided the year. The fog the chief's daughter created helped to refresh the Earth when it grew weary. And the people praised the chief and his children.

The theft of light
A Tsimshian Legend
Giant flew inland (toward the east). He went on for a long time, and finally he was very tired, so he dropped down on the sea the little round stone which his father had given to him. It became a large rock way out at sea.

Giant rested on it and refreshed himself, and took off the raven skin.

At that time there was always darkness. There was no daylight then. Again Giant put on the raven skin and flew toward the east. Now, Giant reached the mainland and arrived at the mouth of Skeena River. There he stopped and scattered the salmon roe and trout roe. He said while he was scattering them, "Let every river and creek have all kinds of fish!"

Then he took the dried sea-lion bladder and scattered the fruits all over the land, saying, "Let every mountain, hill, valley, plain, the whole land, be full of fruits!"

The whole world was still covered with darkness. When the sky was clear, the people would have a little light from the stars; and when clouds were in the sky, it was very dark all over the land. The people were distressed by this. Then Giant thought that it would be hard for him to obtain his food if it were always dark. He remembered that there was light in heaven, whence he had come. Then he made up his mind to bring down the light to our world.

On the following day Giant put on his raven skin, which his father the chief had given to him, and flew upward. Finally he found the hole in the sky, and he flew through it. Giant reached the inside of the sky. He took off the raven skin and put it down near the hole of the sky. He went on, and came to a spring near the house of the chief of heaven. There he sat down and waited.

Then the chief's daughter came out, carrying a small bucket in which she was about to fetch water. She went down to the big spring in front of her father's house. When Giant saw her coming along, he transformed himself into the leaf of a cedar and floated on the water. The chief's daughter dipped it up in her bucket and drank it. Then she returned to her father's house and entered.

After a short time she was with child, and not long after she gave birth to a boy. Then the chief and the chieftainess were very glad. They washed the boy regularly. He began to grow up. Now he was beginning to creep about. They washed him often, and the chief smoothed and cleaned the floor of the house. Now the child was strong and crept about every day.

He began to cry, "Hama, hama!" He was crying all the time, and the great chief was troubled, and called in some of his slaves to carry about the boy. The slaves did so, but he would not sleep for several nights. He kept on crying, "Hama, hama!" Therefore the chief invited all his wise men, and said to them that he did not know what the boy wanted and why he was crying. He wanted the box that was hanging in the chief's house.

This box, in which the daylight was kept, was hanging in one corner of the house. Its name was Maa. Giant had known it before he descended to our world. The child cried for it. The chief was annoyed, and the wise men listened to what the chief told them. When the wise men heard the child crying aloud, they did not know what he was saying. He was crying all the time, "Hama, hama, hama!"

One of the wise men, who understood him, said to the chief, "He is crying for the maa." Therefore the chief ordered it to be taken down. The man put it down. They put it down near the fire, and the boy sat down near it and ceased crying. He stopped crying, for he was glad. Then he rolled the ma about inside the house. He did so for four days. Sometimes he would carry it to the door. Now the great chief did not think of it.

He had quite forgotten it. Then the boy really took up the ma, put it on his shoulders, and ran out with it. While he was running, some one said, "Giant is running away with the maa!" He ran away, and the hosts of heaven pursued him. They shouted that Giant was running away with the ma. He came to the hole of the sky, put on the skin of the raven, and flew down, carrying the maa. Then the hosts of heaven returned to their houses, and he flew down with it to our world.

At that time the world was still dark. He arrived farther up the river, and went down river. Giant had come down near the mouth of Nass River. He went to the mouth of Nass River. It was always dark, and he carried the ma about with him. He went on, and went up the river in the dark. A little farther up he heard the noise of the people, who were catching olachen in bag nets in their canoes.

There was much noise out on the river, because they were working hard. Giant, who was sitting on the shore, said, "Throw ashore one of the things that you are catching, my dear people!" After a while, Giant said again, "Throw ashore one of the things you are catching!" Then those on the water scolded him. "Where did you come from, great liar, whom they call Txä'msem?" The (animal) people knew that it was Giant.

Therefore they made fun of him. Then Giant said again, "Throw ashore one of the things that you are catching, or I shall break the maa!" and all those who were on the water answered, "Where did you get what you are talking about, you liar?" Giant said once more, "Throw ashore one of the things that you are catching, my dear people, or I shall break the maa for you!" One person replied, scolding him.

Giant had repeated his request four times, but those on the water refused what he had asked for. Therefore Giant broke the ma. It broke, and it was daylight. The north wind began to blow hard; and all the fisherman, the Frogs, were driven away by the north wind. All the Frogs who had made fun of Giant were driven away down river until they arrived at one of the large mountainous islands.

Here the Frogs tried to climb up the rock; but they stuck to the rock, being frozen by the north wind, and became stone. They are still on the rock. The fishing frogs named him Txä'msem, and all the world had the daylight.

Native American Legends
Ancient One
An American Indian Legend - Told by Bearwalker
Ancient One sat in the shade of his tree in front of his cave. Red People came to him and he said to Red People, "Tell me your vision." And Red People answered, "The elders have told us to pray in this manner, and that manner, and it is important that only we pray as we have been taught for this has been handed down to us by the elders."

"Hmmmm," said the Ancient One.

Then Black People came to him and he said to Black People, "Tell me your vision." And Black People answered, "Our mothers have said to go to this building and that building and pray in this manner and that manner. And our fathers have said to bow in this manner and that manner when we pray. And it is important that we do only this when we pray."

"Hmmmm," said the Ancient One.

Then Yellow People came to him and he said to Yellow People, "Tell me your vision." And Yellow People answered, "Our teachers have told us to sit in this manner and that manner and to say this thing and that thing when we pray. And it is important that we do only this when we pray."

"Hmmmm," said the Ancient One.

Then White People came to him and he said to White People, "Tell me your vision." And White People answered, "Our Book has told us to pray in this way and that way and to do this thing and that thing, and it is very important that we do this when we pray."

"Hmmmm," said the Ancient One.

Then Ancient One spoke to the Earth and said, "Have you given the people a vision?" And the Earth said, "Yes, a special gift for each one, but the people were so busy speaking and arguing about which way is right they could not see the gift I gave each one of them." And the Ancient One asked same question of Water and Fire and Air and got the same answer.

Then Ancient One asked Animal, and Bird, and Insect, and Tree, and Flower, and Sky, and Moon, and Sun, and Stars, and all of the other Spirits and each told him the same. Ancient One thought this was very sad. He called Red People, Black People, Yellow People, and White People to him and said to them. "The ways taught to you by your Elders, and your Mothers and Fathers, and Teachers, and Books are sacred. It is good that you respect those ways, for they are the ways of your ancestors. But the ancestors no longer walk on the Face of the Earth Mother. You have forgotten your own Vision. Your Vision is right for you but no one else. Now each of you must pray for your own Visions, and be still enough to see them, so you can follow the way of the heart. It is a hard way. It is a good way.

A story about respect
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
There once was a man, who was raising his young son. The mother had passed away in childbirth and he was teaching his son all that he knew. This son, grew up and in time wanted to go to a nearby village and find him a companion. Many months passed and the young man returned to his home, and with him he had a woman, his wife. They lived in the home of his father.

Shortly after, They had a son. And the father, now a grandfather began teaching this young boy all that he knew. How to respect the forest, the animals and life. The mother, tiring of sharing her home with the old man told her husband that she wanted the old man out.

The father spoke "I cannot, this is his home and he built it for us." She spoke "If you do not make him leave then I will take our son and I will leave." The father agreed and spoke to his son. "My son, tomorrow I want you to take Grandpa out and leave him. Give him this blanket." The young boy cried. "Why do you do this? Grandpa has been teaching me all that I know. Why do I have to do this to him?" The father spoke. "Son, follow the wishes of your father." So the next morning, the father went hunting to the North. The son took Grandpa as far as he could walk to the South.

That evening the young boy was sitting on the bed crying when his father came In. He saw the blanket on the bed. "Son, I thought I told you to give Grandpa the blanket?" "I gave Grandpa half of the blanket. The other half, I will give to you some day." The mother and father understood the message. And they went and brought Grandpa back.

An Eagle Story
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
Elder Michael Thrasher once told me that the eagle feather has two sides. If the feather had only one side then Eagle could not fly. On one side we find mind / intellect, body / movement and spirit / emotion.

Once these are balanced a person is balanced.

On the other side there is institution / education (and not just Western style education), process (the movement on one's path) and ceremony. Once these are balanced then a person's life is balanced. When the two sides of the feather are balanced then we have proper behavior.

Funny thing is.... Eagle doesn't care if its feathers have two sides.... It just opens its wings and flies up to Creator.

A tradition of the Calumet
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
In the days of the old men, far to the North there lived a nation with many villages. Their warriors lived a nation with many villages. Their warriors were as many as the Buffalo herds on the plains toward the Darkening Land. Their tepees were many on the shores of a beautiful lake and along wide rivers.

Then the Mysterious One, whose voice is in the clouds, told the chiefs of a great nation, also of many villages, which hunted through all the country from the Big Water in the sunrise to the mountains in the Darkening Land.

Then the chiefs and the old men held a council. Runners came from many villages to the great council. And the council voice was to go to the great nation to the South, the nation with many villages, and bring back scalps and horses.

So the chiefs and warriors went out, one by one. Then runners were sent to all the villages, ordering the chiefs to dance the scalp dance.

Suddenly there came through the sky a great white bird. It came from the forest, and flew into the village of the great chief. It rested above the head of the chief's daughter.

Then the chief's daughter heard a voice in her heart. The voice said, "Call all the chiefs and warriors together. Tell them the Mysterious One is sad because they seek the scalps of the Lenni-Lenapi, the First People. Tell the warriors they must wash their hands in the blood of a young fawn. They must go with many presents to the First People. They must carry to the First People Hobowakan, the calumet."

Thus the First People and the mighty people with many villages on the shore of the lake smoked together the pipe of council. So there was peace.

Basket Woman, Mother of the Stars
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
Back in the beginning of time, when all things were being created, First Man lived in a forest of tall pine trees.

One day while on a hunting trip, he discovered a small lodge. Next to the lodge was a tiny cornfield. "I wonder who lives here", he thought.

The next day, First Man brought his wife, First Woman, through the forest to see the lodge. As they came near, a little old woman came out to greet them.

"I am basket woman, or Moon, the mother of the stars. I lured you here."

Then she invited her visitors inside. Around a small fire sat four old men: Wind, Cloud, Lightning and Thunder.

The lodge was filled with Moon's daughters. Soon the girls began to sing and dance. Moon's daughters told First Man to watch and listen very carefully so he could teach the sacred songs and dances to others.

After the singing and dancing, Basket Woman's Daughters taught First Man and First Woman ceremonies and games.

Evening Star danced in the west and held a basket representing the moon. The basket was made of willow reeds held together with mud, for the Earth is filled with trees.

Four daughters of Black Star were also there they danced and moved toward the west and each placed what she carried in Evening Star's basket two swan necks and two fawn skins, These represented the four gods in the west.

The basket woman's daughters taught First Man and First Woman a game.

They gave them the Moon basket, plum seeds which represented the stars, and twelve sticks which are the circle of chiefs in the sky. They used the sticks as counters.

All this they taught First Man and First Woman and reminded them that Tirawahat sent the stars to the Earth in a moon-basket to teach these first two everything that people were to do.

When First Man and First Woman had learned all they should, their neighbors from the lodge jumped into their basket and flew away up to the sky to return to their places.

Bear did not always hibernate
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
The bear, a giant of a beast, but gentle to all who see its tender loving ways. The bear did not always sleep (hibernate).

It was during the time of the first winter that Wind gave Bear the gift of sleep. All the animals of the forest thought Bear was lazy and slow. They would tease him and harass the poor soul daily. They viewed his kind gentle ways as a weakness.

They always laughed at his friends, and when he stopped and talked to them. Still Bear did not hate or get angry at the animals who made fun of him, he just smiled and went on his way. He loved his feathered friends, his underground friends and his underwater friends. The only time he was sad is when he was hungry and had to eat one of them.

One day father Wind Heard all the animals talking about how foolish bear was. Even Fish turned against his friend. This made Wind very mad.

In a dream he taught Bear what plants to eat and all about the bad things Fish had said. He told Bear fish was not a friend but food. He also told Bear that because he was kind he would receive a special gift. Then bear awoke wondering what gift would Wind give him.

In the next dream, Bear was sad. Winter asked him what is wrong? "I am only good because I have good friends". "That is true", said Winter. So he told Bear to go and tell all his friends about the gift that Wind had promised him.

When Bear awoke he ran through the forest and told all who would listen. This made him very tired and sleepy so he went back to cave and fell a sleep.

As before, many creature did not listen to Bear. They went about their business. Some even called him crazy. So Winter decided to teach them a lesson. As bear and his friends slept, flew away, or gathered food, without knowing Winter came down upon the forest. Yet, he made sure that those who were friends of bear were not aware of him or his brother wind. To them it was a time of the gift.

So as Winter begins his journey across the land, one can still see who were the friends of bear...Are You???

Cannupa - The Sacred Pipe
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
The Earth was red with the blood of the dead, rocks were stained crimson, and shouts of hate echoed on the wind. For all the nations of the earth were at war, and the law of Great Spirit was forgotten.

Great Spirit was saddened by the never-ending din of battle and the cries of pain and agony from His Red Children. He wished all Indians to live in peace, for His land was large and there was room for all.

Great Spirit called all the nations together, and they met on the battle-ground stained with warriors' blood. From a red rock Great Spirit broke a piece away and made it into a pipe. And in the bowl He placed the bark of red trees, and lit it with eternal fire. The Smoke wandered up to the sky, and spirit of mankind embraced the Great Mystery.

Great Spirit presented the pipe to the Indians and said, "Touch this pipe only as a pledge of peace, and smoke it only to seal your promise. For he who smokes the pipe, yet treads the path of war, shall never be welcomed in the Land of Great Spirit."

Lances were laid down and arrows returned to their quivers, and all nations of the earth smoked together in brotherhood. And as nations grew, the pipe of peace was smoked among them.

At the last council that ever was, the sacred pipe was passed around the circle of chiefs three times. Yet no warrior would touch it, for tempers were still bitter among the braves. The pipe was met with downcast eyes, and the tribes people grew sad with thoughts of continued war.

On the fourth pass, a child broke from the arms of his mother and ran into the sacred council. He snatched the pipe from Medicine Man's grasp. White Horn, elder and chief of council was startled, and quickly took the pipe from the child. He gazed at it, then looked up - and all the chiefs were smiling, for the peace pact had been made. Anger was banished from the land, and all the nations of the earth were brothers once again.

Great Spirit left this sacred ground as it had been, stained red with the blood of the dead. It remains forever, a reminder to all the nations of the earth that war does not please Great Spirit, and never will.

Cloud People
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
A little boy stood watching the changes in the sky while his father finished making arrows.

"Father, why is it that I see the cloud people's faces in the sky and then they change?"

"The cloud people are telling you a story, my son. Shall we watch and figure out the Medicine Story the sky nation is giving you today?"

As the two watched, they saw the giant profile of a man, made of clouds, with his lips pursed as if he was whistling or blowing air. Then it changed. An eagle appeared to be gliding on the currents. Later, another change brought the lone figure of an Indian warrior, reaching for an arrow that was flying across the sky. The arrow changed to an eagle feather, and the clouds rolled away.

After reflecting, the boy explained that he saw the Wind Chief blow the breeze that lifted Eagle's wings. The warrior on the ground had to reach higher than his head to catch the arrow of truth. In grasping the truth, the warrior earned an eagle feather. The warrior became the brother of the Eagle, understanding the truth that the Great Mystery sent through his spiritual messengers of the sky nation.

His father smiled, for his son had learned to listen to another one of their relations.

Creation of the Red and White Races
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
Among the people of long, long ago, Old Man Coyote was the symbol of good. Mountain Sheep was the symbol of evil.

Old-Man-in-the-Sky created the world. Then he drained all the water off the Earth and crowded it into the big salt holes now called the oceans. The land became dry except for the lakes and rivers.

Old Man Coyote often became lonely and went up to the Sky World just to talk. One time he was so unhappy that he was crying. Old- Man-in-the-Sky questioned him.

"Why are you so unhappy that you are crying? Have I not made much land for you to run around on? Are not Chief Beaver, Chief Otter, Chief Bear, and Chief Buffalo on the land to keep you company?

"Why do you not like Mountain Sheep? I placed him up in the hilly parts so that you two need not fight. Why do you come up here so often?"

Old Man Coyote sat down and cried more tears. Old-Man-in-the-Sky became cross and began to scold him.

"Foolish Old Man Coyote, you must not drop so much water down upon the land. Have I not worked many days to dry it? Soon you will have it all covered with water again. What is the trouble with you? What more do you want to make you happy?"

"I am very lonely because I have no one to talk to," he replied. "Chief Beaver, Chief Otter, Chief Bear, and Chief Buffalo are busy with their families. They do not have time to visit with me. I want people of my own, so that I may watch over them."

"Then stop this shedding of water," said Old-Man-in-the-Sky. "If you will stop annoying me with your visits, I will make people for you. Take this parfleche. It is a bag made of rawhide. Take it some place in the mountain where there is red Earth. Fill it and bring it back up to me."

Old Man Coyote took the bag made of the skin of an animal and traveled many days and nights. At last he came to a mountain where there was much red soil. He was very weary after such a long journey but he managed to fill the parfleche. Then he was sleepy.

"I will lie down to sleep for a while. When I waken, I will run swiftly back to Old-Man-in-the-Sky."

He slept very soundly.

After a while, Mountain Sheep came along. He saw the bag and looked to see what was in it.

"The poor fool has come a long distance to get such a big load of red soil," he said to himself. "I do not know what he wants it for, but I will have fun with him."

Mountain Sheep dumped all of the red soil out upon the mountain. He filled the lower part of the parfleche with white solid, and the upper part with red soil. Then laughing heartily, he ran to his hiding place.

Soon Old Man Coyote woke up. He tied the top of the bag and hurried with it to Old-Man-in-the-Sky. When he arrived with it, the sun was going to sleep. It was so dark that the two of them could hardly see the soil in the parfleche.

Old-Man-in-the-Sky took the dirt and said, "I will make this soil into the forms of two men and two women."

He did not see that half of the soil was red and the other half white. Then he said to Old Man Coyote, "Take these to the dry land below. They are your people. You can talk with them. So do not come up here to trouble me."

Then he finished shaping the two men and two women--in the darkness.

Old Man Coyote put them in the parfleche and carried them down to dry land. In the morning he took them out and put breath into them. He was surprised to see that one pair was red and the other was white.

"Now I know that Mountain Sheep came while I was asleep. I cannot keep these two colors together."

He thought a while. Then he carried the white ones to the land by the big salt hole. The red ones he kept in his own land so that he could visit with them. That is how Indians and white people came to the Earth.

God in Wolves Clothing
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
There was a time, before the coming of the white man, when the Wolf was a God. And a powerful God at that, with his speed and cunning, he was God of the hunt. With his mate, who he kept for life, and the cubs, together they were Gods of the family.

But most of all, with his song, he was God of the night, a protecting spirit against the black, the unknown. He was a God that was very much a part of the old way.

But then came the white man, and his new ways. He worshipped a new God. A God who lived in the clouds. A God that had no shape, yet could be seen in everything, but the God himself, could not be seen.

Some of our people switched to this new God, and others switched only to save their lives.

The white man's nation grew. Our lands were taken, the fields were farmed, and the great trees cut to support the new nation.

In this new nation, there was no room for the Wolf.

His home was destroyed, his family hunted (for they made warm coats), and he was removed from his place as a deity, only to be placed in a zoo.

When man saw the Wolf, the great God caged, they laughed and laughed. Not only at the God they caged, but also at themselves for being so foolish as to believe that an animal could be a God to man.

The Only God for man had to be greater than man, so they believed.

Over many years, people began to doubt the God in the sky. How did he create man, the rivers, and the sky? Was there really a God, for no one saw him?

Man was so great, he placed a man on the moon, he tamed the animals, and invented machines that could do work and save lives. Who needed a God?

Many people did, but not the same God. There were Gods of Rock, Gods of the Screen as well as the Green God (Almighty Dollar). It seemed that everything had a God, and supporters that would fight for the cause.

Then the God of the sky fell from grace, only to be replaced by two Gods.

These two Gods were greater in power than the God of the sky. Together they fought, and divided the world between them. The eastern part went to the Great Bear (USSR), while the western half belonged to the Proud Eagle.

Both Gods wanted to be the only God, and they always fought with each other, costing them only the lives of their followers, a small price to pay for total power. And from his cage, the Wolf watched.

The fights between the two Gods grew more violent, with more people dying. People prayed to the two to stop, for they were afraid. The Gods both of them turned on the ones who were afraid and struck them down. Their only crime being of weak faith.

Then the people began to turn to the Wolf to protect them. "We were foolish" they cried, "please protect us, the Bear and the Eagle, they are mad." As a show of faith, they set the Wolf free.

The Wolf, not stopping at their cries, ran straight for the woods, and he was gone. The people sat numb, who would save them now? As night fell, the people could hear the Wolf singing, and ran to the sound. They found the Wolf sitting on the rim of a large canyon. "Come all of those who wish to be saved, for come daylight my brothers, the Eagle and the Bear will fight their last battle."

Who will protect you then, the Wolf cried? "Come into the canyon and I will bury you like a prized bone, and when the fighting is done I will dig you out." "Why did you run when we set you free? Will you run again, and leave us forever, cried some of the people?"

I ran to dig the canyon, so to save you all. If you do not trust my words so be it. You do not have to come to me." Many did not trust the Wolf, they feared he was angry with them for mocking him, and so he wouldn't protect them.

Those people went home, yet many stayed. The Wolf buried them deep in the earth, for their protection. He felt their fear, and sang to them, so they would sleep.

In the morning, the Wolf sat protecting his followers, when the Eagle came to visit. "Brother Wolf, please join me, for I have a plan that will destroy the Bear. I will cause the land he walks on to burn. The Bear can't fly, like I and he will burn." "Brother Eagle, your plan sounds like it will need no help from me. Just one thing, please leave some land for me to stand on." "But of course, replied the Eagle.

Then good luck, Brother. May you get what is rightfully yours.

The Eagle flew away. No sooner than he was a speck in the sky, the Bear came to visit his brother. "Brother," he growled "please join me in getting rid of the Eagle for he has become a pest." "The Eagle can fly, and we are both bound to the earth, how can we beat him?" asked the Wolf. "I have found a way to cause the stars to flame and fall on the earth, and as they fall the Eagle will not be able to fly." "You have a great idea, just one thing. Please, don't let any of your stars fall on me."

"Don't worry brother, nothing will happen to you." Then good luck, Brother, may you get what is rightfully yours, the Wolf called out as the Bear lumbered away.

Hours passed, yet the Wolf sat at his canyon. There he saw the dark smoke of death rise from the horizon. The sky began to fall in small flaming bits. His ears were filled with the cries of the followers that refused his aid, his nose filled with the odor of burning flesh.

But the land around the canyon did not change.

Finally, he heard the wounded cry of the Eagle and the low growl of the Bear, and then....................silence.

Nothing, not an animal or man stirred. The World was still.

Slowly the Wolf started to sing a song for the death of his brothers, and then he started a new one. A song which promised the sun and the moon, that he would not let this happen again.

He sang the song over and over again as he dug out his followers. And together they built a new world.

The Wolf was God again, and he and his family shall rule forever......

Grandfather Thunder
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
Muxumsa Pethakowe, our Grandfather the Thunder, was father of the first people, and the Moon was the first mother. But Maxa'xâk, the evil horned serpent, destroyed the Water Keeper Spirit and loosed the waters upon the Earth and the first people were no more. Since then, the Thunderers, Pethakowe'jàk, have always been on the lookout for Maxa'xâk and other such evil water monsters, and when one appears, the Thunderers shoot their crooked, fiery lightening arrows at them, hoping to avenge the deaths of the first people and to make sure that none of the evil shall ever disturb the harmony upon the Earth or cause harm to our Lenape'wàk.

Long ago, there was a time when Grandfather Thunder was forgotten among our people, unlike Grandmother Moon who has always been remembered and honored by us. He became bitter and despondent over our neglect and forgetfulness of him, and in his anger he came from his home in the west, calling out in a voice that shook the heavens and the Earth. Hidden in clouds, he crossed right over the homes and villages of our people. In his fury he shot lightening arrows at the Earth, killing people, burning houses and shattering trees, and the clouds cried their tears of sorrow upon the Earth. Luckily, he never stayed in one place too long, and usually was seen traveling towards the east.

At first he would come alone, but after a while his many children came with him, and they frequently brought fear into the hearts of our Lenapé people. Some would come from a cave under the falls know today as Niagara and others came from the mountains where they often made their homes.

At the sight of dark clouds and lightening, and at the sound of the thunder, being the roar of the wings of the Thunderers and the shaking of their rattles filled with bones, which shook the sky, our people became most fearful.

Nanapush finally saw that we, his grandchildren, were in distress and so he came to help us saying, "You have hurt and insulted your Grandfather Thunder through a lack of respect and thought for him. Grandfathers need to be remembered and honored too, for they also, like grandmothers, have shared in the gift of life and in helping their grandchildren into the future. So, when you first hear Grandfather Thunder in the spring, telling you that winter has ended and that life is again coming to the Earth, burn tobacco and greet your grandfather with prayers.

Whenever you hear his voice, do this and you will gain his protection and lightening will not strike you. Grandfather Thunder has charge of the rains that water the Earth and make your crops grow. With the proper respect, he will be thankful, bringing blessings to you, and protect you from the horned snakes and water monsters, and he will come to bring you warnings!"

From that time to this our Grandfather Thunder and our Lenapé people have always been close. We listened to our wise Grandfather Nanapush, and we have always shown respect to Old Thunder and love him dearly, and we always give thanks for his many gifts to all land and life upon Mother Earth.

Graying of an Eagle
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
Along the hills that looked over a forested land, lived a great eagle of black feathers and wild eyes. He perched on the highest point, which was rocky and ragged.

Just below him was the nest where his two young sons and one daughter sat, hungry and eager for adventure.

They screeched at their father, begging to go out on their own for a few hours. They wanted to see things for themselves. They liked the stories their parents told them, but they wanted to see life outside the nest with their own eyes.

One day the father eagle grew tired of their screeching and told them they could go out by themselves until the sun was directly overhead. They scrambled out of their nest, laughing and singing. They started to go down the rocky hill, not realizing how steep it was and they ended up tumbling half way down the hill, rolling, hitting rocks, scratching themselves on the sharp weeds.

Father eagle looked down at them and just shook his head. He felt one of his feathers moan. He looked down at the feather and was shocked to see that it had turned gray.

So, the process had begun; the graying of an eagle along the path of his growing and wild children. Father eagle chuckled to himself as he watched his children, remembering what he did when he was young eagle.

One evening at sunset, young eagle decided to go on a night-flight on his own, without telling his parents. He took off into the darkening sky with confidence.

As he moved into the night a great wind came over the forest and set the tree tops to dancing and swaying.

Young eagle was flying low and misjudged one of the tree tops. The tree scraped his belly, grabbed at his wings and almost took him down. Young eagle barely got away.

He then decided to fly really low, through the branches of the trees. Suddenly he came upon a great owl, the owl was so frightened that he shot straight up towards young eagle and slammed into young eagle's left wing.

They both fell towards the ground, but managed to pull out of the fall with their strong wings.

Young eagle went on his way, moving in a zig zag, for he was still dizzy from the collision.

When he returned to his home at sunrise, he was bruised and scratched up; his father was perched above the nest, angry, not a feather moving. Young eagle knew he was in trouble, but he noticed a small smile of pride at the corners of his father's eyes. He looked at the left wing of his father, one of the feathers was gray. Young eagle wondered what had happened.

Now, in the time of his own children, he knew what happened. There is no end to this story.

How Music came to the Earth
An American Indian Legend - Nation Unknown
A great medicine man, who studies the four quarters of the world and the skies, walked the Earth and, noticing how silent it was, cried out with great sadness and pity for the people of the world.

He called out for the winds from the four quarters of the Earth, "Come oh Wind!" "Come oh Wind!" "Come oh Wind!" "Come oh Wind!"

The vast sorrowful winds gathered from over the face of the Earth and rose up, high, into the sky. It whisked up the dust of the Earth into a cloud and whipped the seas into a froth. The trees too, bent one way and another, in the wake of the wind, until it arrived at the medicine mans camp.

The medicine man spoke.
"Wind, the world is sad and without hope. Earth is sick from silence. Here we have light and color and sweet fruits aplenty, but we have no music. We should give music to the world, to accompany the dawn, to brighten the dreams of the people and lull the infants in their mother's arms. There should be music in the flowing rivers and the playful breezes. Life should be all music! Go, Wind, through the boundless sadness that lies between the blue smoke of the sky and the vastness above, to the Mansion of the Sun. There our Father Sun is surrounded by musicians, and their music is sweet and broadcasts the sunlight in all directions. Go there and bring us back the best of those musicians and singers."

The wind launched himself up with all his strength to reach the roof of the world, where all melody resides in a hot hive of light in the Mansion of the Sun.

The Sun's musicians were of four colors: white for complexity , red were those of hot passions, love and war, blue of drifting clouds, dreams, trees and streams and yellow-gold were the melodies of gentle lullabies. All were bright and nowhere was there darkness or sadness.

When Father Sun saw the wind approaching he warned his musicians to stop their playing and their singing, for any who raised their voices would have to leave the Mansion of the Sun and go down to Earth.

The wind alighted on the stairs of the Mansion of the Sun and called to those inside, "Come oh musicians! Come oh Singers!

None made answer. All were a silent, a silent Rainbow of glittering, circling dance of colors caught in the blazing glow of the Sun. Wind was enraged at the selfishness of sun and from the farthest corners and the deepest depths he launched forth swarms of blackened clouds, spun around and ripped through with his lightning lash. Flashing and rumbling they besieged the Mansion of the Sun.

From the endless deeps of his throat roared black thunder, and everything round about crumbled. The Sun was caught up in the seething blackness in the sky, a bleary redness in the dark.

The musicians and singers ran in great fear to seek shelter in the wind's embrace, and bearing them gently lest he jar their delicate melodies, with his arms full of joy and brightness, he dove down through the sky to Earth.

The wind beamed with happiness as all the Earth below raised its eyes up to heaven. Its whole face shone with anticipation, each tree lifting its arms up in welcome. The quetzal birds flew up and the faces of the flowers and the cheeks of the fruits, and all the voices of the people cheered as the company of musicians landed on the Earth.

The wind, no longer sorrowful, but all happiness now, sang through the air, kissed the seas and the high places, caressed the valleys and whistled through the trees, distributing music to all the four quarters of the Earth.

And so was music brought to Earth in the arms of the wind and all creation learned to sing. A chorus to accompany the dawn, a lullaby in the mouth of a parent, songs to brighten our dreams and lift the spirit. There is music in the flowing rivers and in the playful breezes.

Life was full of music from that time on!

Loggin's and Messina

if you've been thinkin your all that you've got
then don't feel alone anymore.
for when were together then you've got a lot,
for I am the river and you are the shore

and it goes on and on
watching the river run
further and further from things that we've done
leaving them one by one

and we have just begun.
watching the river run
listening and learning and yearning to run river run

Winding and swirling and dancing along
past by the old willow tree'
where lovers caress as we sing them our song
rejoicing together
as we greet the sea

And it goes on and on
watching the river run.
further and further from things that we've done
leaving them one by one

and it has just begun watching the river run
listening and learning and yearning
to run river run

i felt this was an appropriate place for this