Reading Diary B: American Indian Fairy Tales

The American Indian Fairy Tales Unit was a bit hard to read, mostly because of the names. I think that having the meaning of the names after them throughout the stories made it so much easier. So, here is one of my favorite stories from the American Indian Fairy Tales Unit.

How the Summer Came: Iagoo tells this story about a time when there was no summer. The North Wind caused it to be winter all the time. The people used to imagine that above the clouds in the sky, there were birds and it was warm and it was called summer. O-jeeg's son came across a squirrel who told him about the warm place above the sky and so he went to try to convince his father to find the place so that they could experience warmth. O-jeeg agreed and met with all the animals. They came up with a plan. They manage to break open the sky and free the seasons. O-jeeg could not get away fast enough and he was caught. He risked his life so that his son could experience a different kind of world. I think this story shows how much a father loves his son. I like how it shows that the stars are his father laying on the floor of the sky as a reminder. It is a very sweet story. I feel like this is a story that has such a good moral ending. O-jeeg and the animals risked their lives so that the people, in the world where it was winter all the time, could live a better and happier life. They could experience the warmth of the sun. The story made it seem like O-jeeg knew he wasn't coming back, at least that is what I got out of the story, and the fact that he still went is such an amazing and brave thing to do. It shows how much his son and the other people meant to him.

Snow-covered trees. Source: Wikimedia Commons