The Turquoise Story Book: Stories and Legends of Summer and Nature — John Shaqi
The Turquoise Story Book: Stories and Legends of Summer and Nature
General
The Turquoise Story Book: Stories and Legends of Summer and Nature
Nature -- Juvenile literature; Summer -- Juvenile literature
There was a time when the Indians called the Little Turtle, the Keeper
of the Heavens. That was when the Indians thought the earth was a Great
Island, which rested upon the Big Turtle's back. It came about in this
way. When the Great Island was first made there were no Sun and no Moon
and no Stars. In order to know what to do the old Turtle called a
meeting of all the animals. When they had all gathered together the old
Turtle told them that there was no light. After a long discussion as to
what could be done to mend matters the animals grew weary and were about
to go home and let the Great Island continue in darkness, when the
Little Turtle spoke up and said: "If I were able to climb into the sky I
could gather some of the lightning and make light."
"Go," said Big Turtle. "It will do no harm to try."
Now the Little Turtle had very great powers for, as soon as he had made
up his mind to go, a vast cloud full of thunder and lightning slowly
rolled down toward the animals, and came so near that Little Turtle
climbed into it and was soon carried into the Sky.
As soon as Little Turtle arrived there he went around and gathered as
much as he could of the lightning and kindled a great round flame, which
stood still in the Sky. But it did not light all of the Great Island.
The Sun, as Little Turtle had made it, was not satisfactory, so another
meeting of all the animals was called. To this Council Little Turtle
came in the cloud.
It was decided to give the Sun life and spirit, so that he could run
about the Sky by day. Some animals were told to bore a hole through the
earth so that the Sun could go through it and be back in the East by
night.
This the animals did. But the Sun sometimes loitered in this earth
passage and too often the world was left in total darkness. Again the
animals were dissatisfied, and a third meeting was called to decide the
best plan and to scold the Sun for his neglect.
To this third meeting the Sun and the Little Turtle and all the other
animals came. They decided then and there that the Little Turtle should
make the Sun a wife, and that she should shine while he was going back
to the East through the earth passage.
Then the Little Turtle made the Moon, and gave her as a wife to the Sun.
She was smaller and not so powerful as he. You can see her in the Sky.
The Stars that run about the Sky are their many children.
One day the Moon ran into the earth passage earlier than she should have
done, and before the Sun himself had passed through. So offended was he
that he robbed her of all her heat and much of her light, and she was
never able to keep pace with him in the Sky.
Not knowing why her light had grown dim, or what had become of her, the
Little Turtle went out to see what was the matter. He found the Moon
lingering along the underground trail. There was just a little light and
heat left to her, and barely a strip of her once glorious body—just as
much as one sees of the new Moon nowadays.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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