Reading Notes: Cherokee, Part B

Owl illustration by David Scheirer. Web source: Creative Commons. 

The Owl Gets Married

There once was a widow who had a daughter. The widow always reminded her daughter that it was going to be very important for her to marry someone who is good at hunting and can provide for her. The girl promised that she would would find a man like this.

-  I am all about having help in life, but it makes me a little sad to think that this was all that the girl thought was important.

Eventually a man asks for the girls hand in marriage, but the widow says that  she will only give her blessing to someone who is a good hunter, to which the man responded that he was. He made his plan to go hunt, but when he woke up the next day, he decided to fish instead. The man only caught three small fish that day, so it was pretty unsuccessful. He continues to try to hunt and fight food, but continues to fail.

So the girl follows the man to see what is going on, and he turning into an owl. She is surprised and angry because she thought that she had married a man, not part owl. The girl confronts him and sends the owl away, so he goes to the forest to mourn. Eventually, the only part left of his body is his head (how spooky).

My thoughts:
Since my story-writing day is tomorrow (Halloween), I think I want to put a fun twist on this story. I might replace the character of the man/owl with a vampire. Stay tuned to see what I decide!

Bibliography:

The Owl Gets Married from Myths of the Cherokee by James Mooney. Web source: The UN-Textbook.