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Story of Owl
Platypus Poem
The Lion and the Mosquito
Meteors in Native American Folklore

The Good
                                                                                          Myths   sitemap

      TThese are myths and stories from different cultures about
nocturnal creatures. It's neat to see how we have expressed our
interest in the night.

The Story of Owl
retold by Jennifer Verril

       I'd like to tell you a story which comes from Haiti. It's about Owl. Owl is very shy. He believes that he is ugly - so ugly that no one would want to look at him or see him. So ugly that he would cause road accidents. So ugly that babies will scream if they catch sight of his face. Because of this, Owl almost never goes out in the daytime. He waits until the dark, when his looks can be hidden.

      Once when he was out at night, Owl met a young woman. They started to talk, and she invited him to her house, and he accepted, and they sat on her porch for several hours, talking. Owl liked her very much. And she liked Owl. She invited him to come back the next night. He did so, and again, they sat and talked on the porch until almost dawn. And at some point in the evening they started holding hands. Night after night, Owl would come to visit, and night after night he would leave before dawn, so the girl wouldn't see what he looked like.

       The girl's friends heard of her suitor, and began to ask her questions. They liked the girl, and were pleased that she had met someone she liked. They were curious, too. "Why does Owl never visit during the day ?" They asked. "He works very hard" replied the girl. "By the time he gets home from work and gets cleaned up and has his supper, it's after dark." "We want to meet him" said the girl's friends. "Surely he doesn't work on Sunday. Why don't you have a big party for him? Then we could all get to know him."

       The girl thought that this was a very good idea. So the next time Owl came to visit, she asked him to come to a party. And although Owl was very shy, he was actually quite pleased! "A party just for *me*? Me to be the guest of honour? Oh my!" And he agreed to come on Sunday afternoon.

       But when Sunday came, Owl began to get nervous. He and his cousin, Rooster, got on their horses and started off to the girl's home. But on the way, Owl started to look at Rooster and compare himself to Rooster. "Rooster is tall and brightly dressed and outgoing" thought Owl, looking at Rooster's red hair and colourful clothing and his yellow boots. "I'm dull and drab" thought Owl, looking at his own brown clothes. "And I'm ugly." By the time they neared the party, he was in a panic. "Rooster," said Owl, "I've forgotten something. You go on, and tell them I had to go home and get something. Tell them I'll be here in a little while." Rooster was a cheerful, accommodating fellow, so he agreed to go in and give Owl's message.

       Owl went away, and came back *much* later, after it was dark. He was afraid that the girl and her family might be angry that he was late, so when he went to the door of the house, he asked for Rooster. When Rooster came to the door he was quite startled. "Owl," he said, "what's that on your head?" "It's a hat" said Owl. "Lots of people wear hats." "Yes," said Rooster, "but they wear them *on* their heads, not *over* them." "I hurt my eyes," said Owl, "and they can't bear the light. The hat covers them." "Them and the rest of your head!" retorted Rooster. "Don't mind about my hat," said Owl, "Are they mad at me for being late?" "They'll be even madder if you don't arrive at all" said Rooster, and made as if to drag Owl inside. "I'll come in, I'll come in," said Owl, "But promise me one thing first." "What's that?" asked Rooster. "I have to be home by sunrise", said Owl, "so would you be willing to crow a little *before* sunrise, to let me know the time, rather than at sunrise, as you usually do?" Owl was worried that if he stayed until daylight, the girl would see his face, even with the hat covering it. "Sure, Owl, sure." said Rooster, and they both went inside.

       Well by then, the party was in full swing. The drummers were playing, and the singers were singing, and it sounded something like this. Dong-aada-dong-aada-dong-aada-dong, Dong-aada-dong-aada-aaii-ee-oooo! Dong-aada-dong-aada-dong-aada-dong, Dong-aada-dong-aada-aaii-ee-oooo!

     Well, the drummers were playing Owl's favourite song. And when he heard it, he wanted to dance, so he found the girl, and he apologized for being so late, and was forgiven, and they went out on the dance floor. And you know, for all his shyness, Owl was really a *very* good dancer. He really loved music, and once he started to listen to it, and move to it, he didn't think about where he was, or feel embarrassed. So he and the girl had a wonderful time, and danced all through the night. Dong-aada- dong-aada-dong-aada-dong, Dong-aada-dong-aada-dong-aaii-ee-ooo! Dong-aada-dong-aada-dong-aada-dong. Dong-aada-dong-aada-aaii-eee-oooo!

       Owl was having so much fun that he forgot about the time completely, until he heard his cousin Rooster, who was quite drunk, trying to crow. Cock-a- *hick* -a doo! Cock-a- *hick* ! Owl looked out a window, and panicked completely at what he saw. Rooster was so drunk that he'd missed the dawn! It was *bright* daylight out! Owl was certain that the girl would see his face, and realize how ugly he was,and hate him for it. He ran for the door. Shocked by his sudden flight, the girl called "Owl! Come back!" and ran after him. But Owl didn't hear her, or pay attention to what she said. Then, as he neared the door, he ran right into one of the drummers! Owl tripped, and fell to floor, and lost his hat. For the first time, the girl saw his face. Then Owl got up and ran. "Owl, come back!" yelled the girl, who was gaining on him as a result of the fall. But Owl made it to the door before she did, mounted his horse, and rode away.

      The girl went back to the house, and helped clean up after the party. No one knew what to think of Owl's strange behaviour. That evening, she sat on the porch and waited, hoping that he'd come over, but he didn't. "Oh well," she thought, "it was a late night - maybe he'll come tomorrow." And she went to bed, and thought about him, about how nice he was, and how well he danced, and how he looked. You see, she didn't think he was ugly at all. He had an almost round face, with *big* eyes, and a small nose. She thought it was a strong face, an attractive face. She liked his eyes. She didn't realize that *he* thought himself ugly. She waited for him the next night too, but he didn't come back then. Or the night after that, or the week after that, or the month after that. For a whole year she waited for him to return, but he never did. And finally she met someone else, and married him. But even then, there were mornings when she would wake up, and hear the roosters crowing, and think about Owl, and wonder why he had run away and where he had gone.

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A Platypus Poem
by A.B. (Banjo) Paterson

Drifting along the river.

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The Lion and the Mosquito
A Grimm's Fairytale
Once upon a time . . . a tiny mosquito started to buzz round a lion he met."Go away!" grumbled the sleepy lion, smacking his own cheek in an attempt to drive the insect away. "Why should I?" demanded the mosquito. "You're king of the jungle, not of the air! I'll fly wherever I want and land wherever I please." And so saying, he tickled the lion's ear. In the hope of crushing the insect, the lion boxed his own ears, but the mosquito slipped away from the now dazed lion. "I don't feel it any more. Either it's squashed or it's gone away." But at that very moment, the irritating buzz began again, and the mosquito flew into the lion's nose. Wild with rage, the lion leapt to his hind legs and started to rain punches on his own nose. But the insect, safe inside, refused to budge. With a swollen nose and watery eyes, the lion gave a terrific sneeze, blasting the mosquito out. Angry at being dislodged so abruptly, the mosquito returned to the attack: BUZZ . . . BUZZZ! . . . it whizzed round the lion's head. Large and tough as the lion was, he could not rid himself of his tiny tormenter. This made him angrier still, and he roared fiercely. At the sound of his terrible voice, all the forest creatures fled in fear, but paying no heed to the exhausted lion, the mosquito said triumphantly: "There you are, king of the jungle! Foiled by a tiny mosquito like me!" And highly delighted with his victory, off he buzzed. But he did not notice a spider's web hanging close by, and soon he was turning and twisting, trying to escape from the trapset by a large spider. "Bah!" said the spider in disgust, as he ate it. "Another tiny mosquito. Not much to get excited about, but better than nothing. I was hoping for something more substantial..." And that's what became of the mosquito that foiled the lion!

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Meteors in Native American Folklore
Many Native American tribes believed that the shooting stars or meteors
were really the spirit of a shaman on his way to the afterlife.

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