Reading Notes (EC): Khasi Folktales

The Tiger and the Monkeys

I thought this was a nice little entertaining story about how the monkeys had outwitted the tiger. This story could definitely be the basis for a retelling, as it's got a lot of components that make it so good. My favorite part was how the monkeys decided to trick the tiger by dressing up a fake clay figure. It's quite bold and genius if you think about it. I didn't understand how the tiger could so easily "fall in love" with the singing of a tiny insect. I thought it made him blind and rash, which ultimately led to his beatdown by the monkeys. I thought the story highlighted the tiger as almost being the villain, due to his arrogant and self-centered nature. I think this story could be retold from the point of view of either the tiger or the monkey, which would give a new perspective and greater insight into their thoughts.

The Legend of the Lei Tree

I thought this was another interesting story in this unit about a tree that threatens to take over the livelihoods of people in the surrounding area. After much consideration, a handpicked group of men were sent to the tree in order to cut it down. No matter how hard they worked, all progress they had made was reversed at night as the bark regenerated. A bird comes and tells them that the reason that the tree keeps healing so quickly is because a tiger comes by to lick the trees wounds because he does not want it to be cut down. It helps him hide in the shadows when he hunts for prey. This story would also be a good one for retelling because there are multiple directions for the story to branch out into.

Hokenakal monkey; Wikimedia

Bibliography

Khasi Folktales by K.U. Rafy 

Reading Notes (EC): English Fairy Tales

Tom Tit Tot

I thought this was an interesting story that has the potential to be retold in a variety of ways. It was about a girl who was told to watch the pies her mom had made until they had softened again. The girl though, was impatient and ended up eating all five of the pies. The mother had no food to give the King, so he asks to marry the girl in exchange that she sows him things one month out of the year. The mother agrees and marries her daughter off to the king and for eleven months, the daughter is treated lavishly. At the beginning of the twelfth month, the king takes the girl to a room and tells her she must sow five things a day or else she will be killed. Unfortunately, the girl does not know how to see but a black creature appears out of nowhere and offers to sow for her as long as she can guess his name by the end of the month. She would have three guesses a day or else he would get to take her. So the girl takes this deal, but each day she got the name wrong and each day she got more and more nervous as the creature became more and more confident that she would not get his name. Then one day the king came by and said he had seen a tiny little black creature who had said his name was Tom Tit Tot. So on the last day, when the creature thought he had her, the girl told him his name and he took off, never to be seen again. I'm wondering what it would be like to tell this story from the creature or the king's perspective. It would be a cool concept to consider.

The small little black thing with a tail; UnTextbook

Bibliography

English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs

Reading Notes (B): Brothers Grimm

The Queen Bee

This was a fun little story about two king's sons who go off in search of their fortune and life dreams. While away, they end up falling into a foolish life that prohibits them from going home. The third son, a dwarf, finds them and joins them on their journey through the world. Along the way, the two older brothers want to kill the ants, ducks, and bees they pass. However, the dwarf brother stops them from doing so. Eventually they arrive at a castle where an old man feeds them and allows them to sleep in his castle. The next day, the older brother is assigned to a task that holds the fate of  a lot of people in his hands. He fails, however, as does the second oldest brother. The dwarf brother, though, succeeds in completing the first task with the help of the ants he had saved from his older two brothers. He also completes the second and third tasks with the help of the ducks and bees he also saved from his brothers. The dwarf brother ends up marrying the best princess due to his heroic feat, while the other two brothers marry her two sisters. I thought this story was awesome because there were so many tasks to complete. I could use elements of this story for my story this week and create a fun little game show or something of the sort. I could also tell the story from the perspective of the old man who lives at the castle, which I think would be interesting to figure out.

The Twelve Huntsmen

I liked the idea of the all-knowing lion who kept telling the king that the huntsmen were actually girls. Everytime he tried to expose the girls, the servant would inform the girls of the upcoming task and they would fool the king deftly. I enjoyed the ending of the story because the king was finally reunited with his beloved first wife, whom he had only left because the previous king, his father, had asked him to marry another princess. This would also be an awesome story to expand or retell.

The King and his lion; HathiTrust

Bibliography

Grimm (LibriVox) from Fairy Tales by the Brothers Grimm

Reading Notes (A): Brothers Grimm

The Frog Prince

This was a story about a princess who lost her golden ball in a spring. She was so sad and upset she had lost it that she vowed to give up all her riches and clothes if she could get it back. A frog from inside the spring heard the princess wailing and offered to retrieve the golden ball for her on one condition: she would bring him to her house and let him eat from her plate and sleep on her bed. The princess was naturally wary of this frog, but she agreed to what he had said. However, once he had retrieved the golden ball, she was so overcome with relief and joy that she forgot all about the frog and ran off back home. The frog ended up showing up at the princess's house later that night and her father, the king, advised her to keep her word. So the frog ate from the princess's plate and slept in her bed on the same pillow she slept on for three days straight. On the third day, the princess was shocked to find that the frog has turned into a handsome prince! He explained how he had been cursed by a witch and now that he was normal again, he wanted to take the princess back to his kingdom and marry her. I thought this was a great story to build off of because I'm already familiar with it. There's so many modifications I could make to either make it more modern or to just continue the story.

Rapunzel

This story is one that I'm very familiar with and it brings back a lot of childhood memories. This could be a great basis for another story this week. I read a story by another student last week that built off of this one and it was one of the best stories I've read all semester so I'm excited to see what I could do with this story!

Rapunzel; Un-Textbook

Bibliography

Grimm (LibriVox) from Fairy Tales by the Brothers Grimm

Reading Notes (EC): Brothers Grimm

Cat and Mouse in Partnership

This was an entertaining story about a cat and a mouse who decide to live with each other through the winter season. Mouse is good at heart, while Cat seems to be a little suspicious. Together, they both find a pot of fat that they hide in the church so that no one will dare steal. When winter comes and there's no food left to find outside, they will have plenty stored up in the form of that pot of fat. However, Cat is sneaky and everyday he leaves the house to go to the church and eat from the pot of fat. By the time winter comes around, the pot of fat is gone and the mouse ends up getting eaten by the cat too. I think this would be a great story to add onto or even modify. I liked how the Cat left the house saying he was to be a godfather, and when he came back he would say the name of the kitten was "Half-gone" or "All-gone", referring to how much of the fat was left after eating for the day. It was a very clever plan!

The Wolf and Seven Young Kids

This story was similar to the one about the wolf blowing down the houses of little piggies. However, there were a few major differences. Instead of blowing the houses down, the wolf decided to deceive the little piggies by changing aspects of his appearance. Eventually, this fooled the piggies and he swallowed them one by one. The mother found out and went looking for the wolf. When she found him, she cut his stomach open and all her kids were still miraculously alive in there. She refilled the wolf's stomach with stones and sewed him back up. When the wolf woke up, he was thirsty and went to the well for a drink. When we leaned over, the weight of the stones pulled him in and drowned him. I like the idea for this story because it's one about deceit and about the way "people really are". I could build off this story or rewrite it so it's more modern.

The cat deceives the mouse; Project Gutenberg

Bibliography

Brothers Grimm from Grimm Brothers' Children's and Household Tales by Dan Ashliman

Reading Notes (B): Celtic Fairy Tales

King O'Toole and His Goose

King O'Toole was an active old man whose health eventually began to fail him. In order to make himself feel better, he got himself a goose that helped him do all his usual active daily tasks. This was all good and well until the goose itself got old and worn out from being so active. King O'Toole was once again sad and angry at his miserable old age. One day, a man approaches the King, who happens to be Saint Kavin. Saint Kavin offers the King to make his old goose new again, which makes the King extremely happy and excited. Before healing the goose, Saint Kavin asks for the land that the goose flies over and the King agrees to give it to him He stays true to his word, and after the goose is flying like new again, he tells the Saint that the last acre of land he has is his. This is when Saint Kavin reveals himself and blesses the King until both the King and the goose die. I think this story would be great to base my own story off of because I like the idea of deception for a good cause. I could definitely change it up to make it more modern, but I like the background of this story. I could make a more modern story of a undercover cop fooling an upstanding citizen or something of the sort. I'm not sure how I would incorporate a goose into a modern story, but maybe I could use another animal or object to take place of the goose. I could also throw in a big twist in the original story and have King O'Toole go back on his word and write about the consequences of that decision. I think that would be an interest side of the story to include. Overall, there are many ways for me to expand upon this story that I'm excited to see how it turns out.

King O'Toole's goose; Wikipedia

Bibliography

Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs

Reading Notes (A): Celtic Fairy Tales

Connla and the Fairy Maiden

Connla is approached by a fairy maiden from the Plains of the Ever Living. She describes this place as one of neither death nor sin, where there is always joy and never any problems. This maiden sounds great, right? Well unfortunately, Connla was the only one who could see the maiden, as his father Conn the King, was perplexed by his son's behavior of speaking to himself. The fairy maiden replies that she is in love with Connla and had come to take him back to where she lives. The King is worried about what he hears, even though he cannot see her, and seeks help. Coran performs a spell in the general direction of the unseen maiden and she disappears, but not before she throws an apple towards Connla. It was an apple that regenerated every time he was hungry. He ate nothing for a month except for that apple. At the end of the month, the maiden returns and successfully woos Connla to come with her. I think this would be an interesting story to build off of for my storytelling assignment this week, especially the part about where she comes from.

The Field of Boliauns 

Tom Fitzpatrick comes across what seems to be a leprechaun with a bottle of beer in the bushes. The beer is made of heath according to the leprechaun, which makes Tom keen to try it. Unfortunately, the leprechaun refuses and Tom gets angry and demands money from the leprechaun. The leprechaun becomes frightened and agrees to take Tom to it. The money is buried under a boliaun, but Tom doesn't have a shovel so he takes a chance and runs back to his house to grab one. Upon returning, he realized that the Leprechaun tricked him and that there were too many boliauns to dig under all of them. This is a great trick that I could write my story about this week. I may associate this trick with modern day times in order to make it more relatable to everyone.

Leprechaun; Wikimedia

Bibliography

Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs

Reading Notes (B): Apache Tales

The Supernatural Person in the Lake

A woman gives a boy a present that will make him the medicine man. With nothing to eat, the boy leads the men into corralling antelope into the river so they could kill them for food. After three days, the women tells him to stop since they have enough food and asks to have the present back. I thought that was absurd because who asks for people to give their presents back?! He tells her he gave it to the supernatural one and she curses him. He left to his own country and lived at the bottom of a lake in a tent.

Apache medicine man; Wikipedia 

The Man Who Travelled with the Buffalo 

One person survived the heat but was dying from thirst while out on a war expedition into enemy territory. He falls asleep and upon waking up, he hears Ravens talking about these men who had killed the buffalo. They mentioned the killing of very many buffalo. The man was very thirsty and set off to find water. A prairie dog gives him some and he is off following the buffalo and sleeping with them at night.

Coyote Steals a Man's Wife

A coyote steals a man's wife. The man then chases after them in order to get his wife back. Each camp of theirs he passes by, nearby dwellers tell him he is getting closer and closer. Finally, he finds his wife and orders the Coyote to swallow hot stones wrapped in fat. After swallowing four of these horrible stones, the Coyote falls dead while running. The husband tells his wife to bathe. After obliging and finishing her bath, they leave due East. I thought this story would come in handy for the storytelling assignment this week. It's almost a comical concept of this Coyote stealing a man's wife, although I'm not sure if it was intended to be portrayed in that manner.

Bibliography

Apache Tales by P.E. Goddard

Reading Notes (A): Apache Tales

The Emergence

This story begins in the underworld, which I thought was pretty interesting. The people then come up from the underworld to the earth that we know today. I found it to be pretty unique that the Apache believed that people originally began in the underworld before coming up and inhabiting the earth as we know it today. The people used ladders to climb a great mountain into the upper world. As they climbed up, the ladders wore out, leaving an old couple behind in the lower world. I noticed that the number four was mentioned multiple times in this beginning story. I'm beginning to think it's a theme that the Apache believe in.

The First War

Again, I'm seeing the number four pop up multiple times throughout this story. It may be a traditional number that is sacred to them that has a specific purpose. It may be auspicious is some regard. I could use this theme in my story for the week and build off of it. A grandson kills his grandfather in the first war because the grandfather initially shot the grandson in the arm with an arrow,

The Culture Heroes and Owl

Two companions ask their grandmother to make them something to play with, She defers to their father, who seems to be the sun, and they go to visit him. He makes them a hoop and pole game with arrows and warns them not to roll the hoop toward the north. Of course, they roll the hoop to the north and it ends up in a fire at the house of Owl. The Owl chops up the kids and cooks them in a pot of stew to eat, but the kids seem to be alive and fine! The Owl lets them go with their hoop and pole and they continue to play until sunset. This was interesting, although I didn't know if there was supposed to be a point to this story. Definitely good material that I could use for my story this week. I think I know what I will be writing about!

An owl looking into the distance; Wikipedia

Bibliography

Apache Tales by P.E. Goddard 

Reading Notes (B): California and the Old Southwest

Origin of the Sierra Nevadas

At a time in the world in which there was nothing but water, Hawk and Crow were perched on a pole that stuck far up out of the water. They would take turns sitting and knocking each other off the pole for ages. They created other birds that prey on fish, while also creating Duck. Duck died with mud from bottom of the water in her beak. This mud is what Hawk and Crow used to begin making the mountains. Crow's mountain range was bigger than Hawk's. This is why the Sierra Nevada Range is larger than the Coast Range.

Legend of Tu-Tok-A-Nu'-La (El Capitan)

Two boys go down to the river for a swim. Afterwards, they fall asleep on a boulder near the banks of the river. They sleep so soundly that they don't realize that the boulder has been growing each and every day up until the point that they graze the surface of the moon. Their village and family members can't find them no matter how hard they look. All the animals try to jump as high as they can in order to bring the boys back down, but to no avail; they all fail. Then comes a tiny measuring worm who steadily climb up the boulder until he has traveled much farther than the lion's highest leap. At last, he reaches the top and awakes the two boys and brings them safely back to the ground. The rock is then called Tutokanula, the measuring worm or El Capitan.

The Children of Cloud

A gorgeous young woman gives birth to twin sons. Their father is Cloud, who lives far away. One day the boys question their mother about their father. She tells them of the Cloud being their father. The boys travel to the house of Wind, who is their uncle, so they can visit their father. Wind says to go to the next house, where Cloud lives. Cloud sends them back to Wind and tells them that he has something to tell them. This repeats four times before Cloud tells the twins to prove that they are his sons. He tests them and they prove they are his sons. They are thunder and lightning. This would be a cool story to build off of and has some unique ideas that I could use for my story this week.

Clouds with thunder and lightning; Public Domain Pictures

Bibliography

Myths and Legends of California and the Old Southwest by Katharine Berry Judson.

Reading Notes (A): California and the Old Southwest

Three Coyote Creation Stories

Coyote began the creation of Earth, but Eagle completed it. Coyote and Fox created man; ultimately men die. Coyote also brought fire into the world in order to save the Indians from freezing. Coyote killed nine out of ten moons in order to save the Indians from freezing at night. He also killed all nine out of ten suns in order to save the world from burning up. There's only room for one each. A flood came and destroyed everyone and everything except Coyote. He planted feathers at each Indian village and there trees sprouted that turned into people. This is how the world was inhabited once again. This is a good idea for my story this week. I could make up my own creation story and use bits and pieces of this one in order to help it flow.

The Creation of the World

An Earth Doctor creates the world, including the trees, mountains, water, grass, etc. The sun and moon are made of ice. He also created the stars and the entire Milky Way galaxy.

Stars in the Milky Way; Wikimedia

Spider's Creation

A spider creates two women from two parcels by singing. More people appeared, as well as animals, birds, and insects. The spider continues to sing until the creation is complete. The two women are were mothers of all. Utset is the mother of all Indians, while Nowutset is the mother of all nations. The people are divided into clan by the spider. The spider also creates the cloud people, lightning people, thunder people, and rainbow people in order to create rain on the new Earth. The two women create the sun and the moon and also the star people so they can light up the world at night when the moon is not so bright.

The Great Fire/The Origin of Light

A man loves two women and wished to marry both of them. The women laugh at him and he proceeds to build a tule boat so he can escape before he sets the world on fire. It's a massive fire that only Coyote is able to put out after much work.

Bibliography

Myths and Legends of California and the Old Southwest by Katharine Berry Judson.

Reading Notes (B): The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung

The Lord of the Heavens

Due to his unruly conduct, Sun Wu Kung is almost taken prisoner by the Lord of the Heavens. However, the Evening Star comes to his defense and explains that Sun Wu Kung is an immortal made from the purest powers. So instead, Sun Wu Kung is offered a position as stable master in heaven! For my story, I could tweak this story and describe the journey to heaven from the stone ape's point of view. I could also elaborate on his new position as stable master as part of my story this week.

The Great Saint

At dinner one day, Sun Wu Kung asks about his title of stable master. He is expecting it to be a very official title, one of the highest ranks. But alas, that is not true. His friends tell him it's not an important title at all. Sun Wu Kung then gets very angry and feels he has been mistreated. He leaves heaven is a flurry and returns home to his mountain where he is a respected King. His new title becomes the "Great Saint who is Heaven's Equal",

Notscha, Son of Li Dsing
Upon hearing of the escape of Sun Wu Kung, the Lord of the Heavens orders Li Dsing, his son, Notscha, and a heavenly warrior to find Sun and take him prisoner.  Sun Wu Kung easily defeats the heavenly warrior and laughs at him for even trying to fight him. Then an epic fight between Notscha and Sun Wu occurs and it is one for the ages. Ultimately, Sun Wu Kung wins and Li Dsing return to heaven to tell the Lord of the Heavens of their defeat. Once again, they are speechless. The Evening Star once again returns and suggests giving the title of the Great Saint who is Heaven's equal to Sun Wu Kung. It was an empty title, after all. The Lord of the Heavens agrees and summons Sun Wu Kung once again. I think retelling the story of Sun and Notscha's would be an entertaining story to write for this week. It's a good idea to work with!

Sun Wu Kung; Wikipedia 

Bibliography

The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung taken from Wilhelm's Chinese Fairy Book.

Reading Notes (A): The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung

Handsome King of the Apes

The King of the Apes was born on a mountain out of a special rock. This rock was filled hidden power from the heavens and earth and sun and moon since it originated from the beginning of time. One day, the rock bursts and out comes an egg. From this egg hatches a stone ape who eventually becomes the King. There was a waterfall that was basically the entrance to a cave. He told his ape friends what he found and then led them inside the cave. There they found  pots and pans and other utensils that were only made of stone. From then, the stone ape was named the Handsome King of Apes. I like the idea of there being a waterfall covering an entrance to something grand. I can potentially use this in my story for this week.

The stone ape and the waterfall; Wikimedia

The Great Sea

In this story, the King of the Apes breaks down at the thought of death. A wise, old ape speaks of three different kinds of living creatures who are exempt from Death's powers: the Buddhas, the blessed spirits, and the gods. Only these three categories can skip death and live as long as the heavens.

Sun Wu Kung Gets His Name

At the Mountain of Heart, the King of the Apes comes across a workman who tells him of a saint named "The Discerner". This saint gives the ape who came out of stone a name: Sun Wu Kung.

The Master

The master offers many different things that Sun Wu Kung can learn but he desired to only know how to attain eternal life. The master became irritated at his negligence and hit him across the head three times. However, the master was not irritated. Instead, the three blows to his face was an indication to meet him during the third watch of the night in his chambers. At the proper time, Sun Wu Kung excitedly made his way to the chambers and exclaims that he is ready to learn.

Bibliography

The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung taken from Wilhelm's Chinese Fairy Book.

Reading Notes (A): Tutinameh - Tales of a Parrot

Miemun and Khojisteh 

The parrot that Miemun buys for a large sum of money apparently has the ability to see the future. He is very pleased with his purchase. Miemun also purchases another bird as a companion for the parrot. This is a good idea that I could possibly build my story around this week.

Khojisteh and the Parrot

Miemun leaves for business, which leaves Khojisteh aching for his return. She neither slept of ate while he was away. In order to make her feel better, the parrot would tell pleasant stories throughout the day. While he is away, a prince comes by, and instantly, there are sparks between him and Khojisteh. He sends her a proposal in which if she gives his four hours of the night, he will give her a ring. Khojisteh is flattered by this prince, and in a daze, she sends back an answer to come at midnight. Wearing all her finest apparel that night, Khojisteh asks the sharuk (the other bird) for her advice. The sharuk replies that she should not commit such a lowly deed and stay faithful to her husband. Engulfed in love, Khojisteh begins to rage and kills the sharuk. Next, she asks the parrot for his advice and he basically says he has her back. He begins to tell a story to elaborate on his advice.

 The Parrot of Ferukh Beg 

This story is about another parrot who decided not to tell his master of his wife's cheating. However, his master finds out from another neighbor what his wife is doing and he kicks her out. Naturally, the wife blames the parrot and almost kills him while throwing him outside. The parrot nurses himself back to health and threatens to curse his master's wife unless she shaved her head and fasts for forty days. He tells the wife that he will make amends and proceeds to do so. In the end, all three characters end up together in the same house and live happily ever after. Khojisteh, happy at hearing this story, feels relieved. However, now she is too tired to meet the prince and decides to sleep.

Khojisteh and the parrot; Wikipedia

Bibliography

Tutinameh, or Tales of a Parrot by unknown.

Reading Notes (A) - Jataka Tales (Shedlock)

The Spirit that Lived in a Tree 

A king wanted to tear down a Sal tree to use it as the sole column for his palace. The tree spirit living in this tree was afraid that if he was cut down, the little children would also perish. He's not worried about himself, but his children. The king is awed by his sacrifice and decides not to cut down the tree.

The Hare that Was Not Afraid to Die

This time, Buddha is reborn as a hare, and again, he is willing to sacrifice himself to help others. The hare and his three friends, Otter, Jackal, and Monkey, believed that the moral law should be observed and that holy days should be kept. This moral law was to give alms to the poor.  In this story, all four friends offer their own food to a Brahmin that asks, who was actually Sakka, the King of the Gods. The hare has no food to offer other than himself, and proceeds to do so when asked. I like the idea of this story, and the fact that Sakka disguised himself to prove something. It's an idea I can use for my story.

The Parrot that Fed His Parents

Buddha is born a parrot and once again shows his willingness to help others. This time he is the leader of a flock of parrots. He takes them to get food, and after they have all eaten, he brings extra food back to his parents so they can eat. He says he is repaying a debt and doing only what is right.

The Man Who Worked to Give Alms

Buddha is reborn a merchant to works to give alms to the less fortunate. Sakka becomes jealous of him and suspects Buddha of plotting to take his spot. Sakka takes all his alms and fortunes so Buddha cannot give anymore. Buddha does not let this stop him, and mows grass in order to sell to get alms. Sakka is amazed by this and restores his fortunes and allows him to distribute alms.

The King Who Saw the Truth 

Buddha is born as a king who gives away his eyes to a blind man, which is actually Sakka.

Buddha; Pixabay

Bibliography

Jataka Tales by Marie L. Shedlock

Reading Notes (B): Noah and the Ark

The Holy Book

Samael asks Eve to watch his son, which he happily agrees to do. However, Adam is fed up with the screaming and kicking kid and accidentally ends up killing him. The corpse still continues to kick and scream however, so Adam and Eve cut up the child, cook him, and eat him...pretty disturbing, but I think I could use this for my story this week! Samael returns, but Adam and Eve deny the whole incident. Adam fasts in order to speak to God and when he does so, God gives him the Torah. Jealous of all the knowledge he gains, the angels steal the book and throw it in the sea. Adam once again seeks God, who calmly tells him not to worry and recovers it from the sea. Noah was given the book in order to build the ark before the flood appeared and from then onwards, the book was passed down to many people so they could gain great wisdom.

The Inmates of the Ark

The ark was completed according to the instructions given in the Book of Raziel. God ordered the animals to repair the ark, while Noah was instructed to filter who was allowed into the ark and who wasn't. The animals which laid down at the entrance were granted entrance, while the others were not. The animals that were denied chaotically try to get in, but the rain begins to pour down, scalding hot. These animals throw their kids into the flood water in order to save themselves, a selfish move if you ask me. The rest of this story then goes on to describe some of the animals aboard the ark.

The animals working/waiting on the ark; Wikimedia

The Flood

Noah's biggest task was to provide food and shelter for the animals for however long the floods persisted. This story details the struggles Noah, his family, and the animals went through aboard the ark during the flood.

Bibliography 

Noah and the Ark from Legends of the Jews, by Louis Ginzberg.

Reading Notes (A): Noah and the Ark

The Ark (Genesis)

God sees that there is a wickedness and violence in man on Earth and grieves at the fact that he created man. He decides to destroy all men and animals, basically everything living. God warns Noah that the end is coming and to make an ark before the floods ravage the world. Noah is instructed on how to build the ark, as well as who to allow on the ark: his family and two of everything living (male and female) in order to preserve precious life.

Construction of Noah's Ark; Wikimedia 

The Flood (Genesis)

God tells Noah that he will make it rain for 40 days and 40 nights, until every living thing he has created is wiped off the face of the planet, except for whatever Noah manages to save and bring onto the ark. The floods literally cover everything, from the plains to the trees to the mountains! All the birds and animals and humans left on Earth are destroyed as the flood and ark (and the living beings in it) become the only remaining objects. The flood waters remain for 150 days.

After the Flood (Genesis)

Noah sends a dove to see if the waters had abated from the Earth. Seven days later, the dove came back with a leaf and Noah knew land was visible. God vows never again to curse the ground for man's sake. 

Noah's Sons (Genesis)

God blesses Noah's family and tells them to flourish! Noah lived 950 years before finally passing away.

The Tower of Babel (Genesis)

This story and onward focuses on the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 

Bibliography

Noah and the Ark from the Bible (Genesis) & by Louis Ginzberg 

Reading Notes (B): Ovid's Metamorphoses (Books 1-4)

Echo

This story is about Jupiter and Juno arguing about who gains more from the pleasures of love. Jupiter says it's Juno, while Juno believes the opposite. They have a son named Bacchus, who was born twice. That's an interesting idea that I might be able to use in my own story! Tiresias had disturbed two snakes who were mating in the forest and that changed him from a man to a woman. After eight years of living as a woman, he ran into the snakes again. This time, once again, he decided to disturb them and was changed back to his former sex. Tiresias agreed with Jupiter that women enjoy lovemaking more. This decision upsets Saturnia, and damned Tiresias. However, instead Tiresias gains knowledge of the future. The nymph Echo can only repeat the last of what is spoken and repeats the words she hears. She is rejected by Narcissus, for whom she has a deep longing. She ends up withering away in the forest, with only her voice remaining.

Narcissus

After going near a fountain Narcissus falls in love with himself. He struggles and longs to grab the image of himself in the water and begins to feel the pains of unrequited love. Eventually Narcissus turns into a flower.

Pyramus and Thisbe

They grow up together and end up falling in love with each other. They would marry, but their parents forbid it. They talk to each other through a shared hole in the wall wall that connects their neighboring houses. The two decide to run off together in the middle of the night. However, while Thisbe is waiting for Pyramus at their designated spot, a lioness appears and spooks Thisbe into the caves. Pyramus appears and sees the lioness and also Thisbe's veil that was left in a rush for her to leave. On it is the blood from the lioness, which Pyramus mistakes as being Thisbe's blood. He thinks she died and proceeds to kill himself. Thisbe sees what has happened and is wrought with pain and longing and misery. She also proceeds to end her life with the same sword. And thus, their love story ends on that fateful, misunderstood night.

Pyramus & Thisbe's fateful love story; Wikimedia

Bibliography

Ovid's Metamorphoses (Books 1-4) by Tony Kline

Reading Notes (A): Ovid's Metamorphoses (Books 1-4)

Deucalion and Pyrrha

Jupiter & Neptune destroy the earth with a flood. Deucalion and Pyrrha are the lone two survivors.
Instead of ruining the earth with a flood, I could do it with a volcano or other weather disaster. I like the volcano idea! Deucalion and Pyrrha pray and ask the goddess Themis what they can do to restore the human race. She grants their wish on the condition that they throw stones behind them. Upon doing so, the stones mutate and form into humans. This part was very vivid, with great imagery; need to remember to do the same for my story. Instead of throwing stones behind them though, I can use something else, like tree branches or leaves or something like that.

Io

A character named Argus has a hundred eyes around his head. Io gets turned into a young female cow.

Callisto

Jupiter tricks Calisto into thinking he is a women and proceeds to rape her. Callisto becomes pregnant and gives birth to a boy named Arcas. Callisto then turns into a huge bear.

Semele

Juno is angry that Jupiter impregnates Semele. She seems to be jealous and accusing towards Semele because wants to remain the mother of Jupiter's child. Semele is consumed by the fire of her nuptial gift; she is mortal, after all.

Jupiter & Semele. by Gustave Moreau; Wikipedia

Bibliography

Ovid's Metamorphoses (Books 1-4) by Tony Kline