Reading Notes, California and the Old Southwest, Part B
Origin of the Sierra Nevadas and Coast Range:
This story is about the creation of the world. Early on, there was nothing but water covering the entire planet. In one spot though, there was a large pole which two birds sat on. These two birds were the Hawk and the Crow. For many ages, they would fight for the top of the pole to perch on. One day they created other birds. These birds were Kingfisher, Eagle, Pelican, and Duck. Duck was able to dive deep into the water unlike the others, and when she dove once, she collected a beak full of mud and then died on the journey back to the surface. When she finally surfaced, Hawk and Crow took the mud from her beak and created the mountains. After they had finished creating their mountain ranges, Hawk realized that Crow's mountain range was much larger. He used some Indian tobacco which made him wise, and then circled Crow's mountains with more which then made Hawk's territory larger.
Legend of Tu-tok-a-nu'-la (El Capitan):
Two boys who were out playing in the water one day crept up upon a boulder and fell asleep. The boulder grew very high until the boys were completely out of sight of their village. The village sent people out to find them, but they had no luck. Some animals who had seen the boys rise on the rock, made a task force to bring the boys down. All the animals tried jumping their highest, and none were successful. That was until a small worm came forward and inched his way up the rock. He was able to rescue the boys, and the rock was named Tutokanula, or the measuring worm.
The Children of Cloud:
Two boys who had never met their father asked their mother where they could find him. She told them he was in the clouds, and when the boys asked if they could visit him, she said yes, but then told them that the journey to get to the clouds was a tough one. They set off on their way until they came upon their uncle, Wind. When they got to his house, he told them to go ahead towards the clouds to meet their father. When they got to their fathers house in the clouds, he sent them back to Wind. After doing this multiple times, Cloud finally told them that if they were truly his sons then they would have powers like his. They both showed off their powers, one boy was able to send lightning out of his fists, and the other boy created lightning and thunder. Cloud agreed that they were his own, but continued to test them. He sent them into a house and then rained on them until the house was completely submersed. Once he had seen that the boys were unharmed, he finally took them in to his own house. They lived there for many years until one day they wished to see their mother again. He told them to go ahead, but warned them not to speak to anyone that they met along the way. They ran into three different beings, and avoided all of them, until the last one, the Coyote, scared them. Cloud watched after them however, and sent a lightning bolt to scare off the coyote. Once they had gotten past the coyote, the boys were turned into the largest mescals ever, which is why mescals grow on the mountain ridge still to this day.
Bibliography: Katharine Berry Judson, Southwestern and California Legends, California and the Old Southwest
This story is about the creation of the world. Early on, there was nothing but water covering the entire planet. In one spot though, there was a large pole which two birds sat on. These two birds were the Hawk and the Crow. For many ages, they would fight for the top of the pole to perch on. One day they created other birds. These birds were Kingfisher, Eagle, Pelican, and Duck. Duck was able to dive deep into the water unlike the others, and when she dove once, she collected a beak full of mud and then died on the journey back to the surface. When she finally surfaced, Hawk and Crow took the mud from her beak and created the mountains. After they had finished creating their mountain ranges, Hawk realized that Crow's mountain range was much larger. He used some Indian tobacco which made him wise, and then circled Crow's mountains with more which then made Hawk's territory larger.
Legend of Tu-tok-a-nu'-la (El Capitan):
Two boys who were out playing in the water one day crept up upon a boulder and fell asleep. The boulder grew very high until the boys were completely out of sight of their village. The village sent people out to find them, but they had no luck. Some animals who had seen the boys rise on the rock, made a task force to bring the boys down. All the animals tried jumping their highest, and none were successful. That was until a small worm came forward and inched his way up the rock. He was able to rescue the boys, and the rock was named Tutokanula, or the measuring worm.
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| El Capitan at Yosemite credit: flickr |
The Children of Cloud:
Two boys who had never met their father asked their mother where they could find him. She told them he was in the clouds, and when the boys asked if they could visit him, she said yes, but then told them that the journey to get to the clouds was a tough one. They set off on their way until they came upon their uncle, Wind. When they got to his house, he told them to go ahead towards the clouds to meet their father. When they got to their fathers house in the clouds, he sent them back to Wind. After doing this multiple times, Cloud finally told them that if they were truly his sons then they would have powers like his. They both showed off their powers, one boy was able to send lightning out of his fists, and the other boy created lightning and thunder. Cloud agreed that they were his own, but continued to test them. He sent them into a house and then rained on them until the house was completely submersed. Once he had seen that the boys were unharmed, he finally took them in to his own house. They lived there for many years until one day they wished to see their mother again. He told them to go ahead, but warned them not to speak to anyone that they met along the way. They ran into three different beings, and avoided all of them, until the last one, the Coyote, scared them. Cloud watched after them however, and sent a lightning bolt to scare off the coyote. Once they had gotten past the coyote, the boys were turned into the largest mescals ever, which is why mescals grow on the mountain ridge still to this day.
Bibliography: Katharine Berry Judson, Southwestern and California Legends, California and the Old Southwest
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