Extra Reading Diary: Stories from Congo

Stories from Congo:

How the wives restored their husband to life:
Ndoza'ntu has a very impressive skill - but Songa'nzila knowing which road without having the dream?  That's really crazy!  I wonder if the man didn't even consider mixing the pots - I wouldn't have necessarily thought of that on the spot after coming back to life.  After all, all three of his wives played an important role in helping him come back to life and they should all be thanked in their own special yet different ways if he doesn't want to thank them the same way.

How gazelle got married:
Why would the father declare war on his daughters' new husbands?  I feel like that would be the last thing he'd want to do because of their new husband lost, he would not be able to provide for his wives and they'd starve.  I could understand the father declaring war before the new husband took them to be wives but after?  And also, they have terrible memories - that's very frustrating.  It's nice that they took care of the dog though.  I find it interesting that they'd take care of the dog yet declare war on the owner, though.

Another Vanishing Wife:
I hate that Mavungu was treated so terribly as a child but find it very interesting that for each leaf he pulled off, a beautiful man or woman appeared.  I think that's very strange yet neat.  Was there some sort of witch that trapped the people in that form?  That would be what I was wondering.

The Jealous Wife:
I can't believe this elder wife would kill a child.  That's so disgusting.  And the other child had to witness it - that's so scarring.  I'm sure the new wife is scared as well.  It's too bad her husband didn't believe her at first but I suppose if he did, that would be a bit alarming as well.

The Wicked Husband:
Ugh, this is a nasty story.  I really don't like it.  I wonder why the people of the Congo tell such terrible, dark stories.  I can't believe that they'd do anyone any good to hear them.

The Twin Brothers:
First off, I like how the story starts off at the beginning - at their births.  Are these the same brothers from before?  Where one was abused?  Oh, guess not.  Maybe those are simply common names for this time/culture?  Anyways, there's so many charms in this story.  It is a bit confusing.

Congo, on a map

Source:  Wikipedia

Reading Diary B: Tibetan Folk Tales

Tibetan Folk Tales:

How the rabbit killed the lion:
This is an interesting story - based on the proverb, I didn't foresee this lion killing himself.  I don't like that the lion drowned.  I wonder if the rabbit knew/thought he would.  I also wonder what kowtow means.  I'll have to look that up.

The Story of the Three Hunters:
I think it's a quite drastic measure to kill someone based off the piece of meat they got.  Surely, this must have been a building hatred but why?  The third wife didn't hate her, so I'm guessing the brothers couldn't have been treating the sister that much better anyways.  If anything, they should pity the sister for not having her own man to take care of her anyways (not that women need men to take care of them...).  It's really quite terrible the men killed their own wives and then shared the third - was the third wife even okay with that?

How the Raven Saved the Hunter:
This is a sad story - the raven sacrificed his life to warn the hunter and to save his. I'm glad the hunter lived regardless, but I hope the hunter vowed to not hunt ravens at all anymore or something as a way to honor the raven who died on his behalf.

The man with five friends with different colored eyes:
I'm so glad the man had a friend to back him up.  I feel it was a bit ridiculous for the man to have had 10 children with a woman in order to tell her secrets though.  Did people commonly have that many children?  Perhaps, the father simply meant to never trust women?  Either way, I can't believe the wife would so easily give up on her husband.  Surely she knew the consequences of her actions.

A Rabbit Story:
Man, this must be the fiercest little rabbit that I've ever read about.  Most of the stories that I've read presents them as nice, soft, cuddle-y little animals.  I wonder why the author chose to present the rabbit as such an evil-doer this time.  It certainly is unique though.

European rabbit relaxing in the grass

Source:  Wikipedia

Reading Diary A: Tibetan Folk Tales

Tibetan Folk Tales:

The Tiger and the Frog:
I really like how clever the frog is - convincing the tiger he beat him at jumping and also would give him a match in a strength competition - very sneaky.  I also think the frog is quite brave for having the guts to bite a tiger's tail in order to latch on for the jump.  It was also clever that the frog addressed the fox in a way so that the tiger was under the impression the fox was on his side.  I imagine the tiger ran so fast the fox didn't have time to explain himself and probably couldn't later since he was being dragged along.

The Cony who got into bad Company:
I think this is a very important lesson to learn.  Since I'm an RA, I see this situation played out a lot of different ways in the residence halls.  On just about any set of rounds, I find residents breaking the rules and anyone in the room is written up for it and they can then plead their case to student conduct.  Those in bad company often get in trouble just like those who were performing the "bad deed."  We are told this lesson since the time we're young, but there's so much truth to it.  It's not a promise, but it is certainly a probability.

The Donkey and the Rock:
This was a great ending.  I wish I had a better perspective on how valuable half a cent would be to the people of this time, but I really like how the king handled it.  It's an important lesson to learn to not be so caught up and entertained by the gossip and other people's hardships but instead support them, which the king made them all do (essentially).

How the fox fell a victim to his own deceit:
Although I feel like death was not a good way to teach the fox a lesson, I do hate how he tried to turn the friends against one another.  I mean, what does that even accomplish?  As ridiculous as it may seem, this happens a lot in real life as well, whether intentionally or unintentionally.  Gossip has this power and can be so destructive.

Covetousness:
This tale is not my favorite, although I admire the moral lesson that it teaches/entails.  It is never a good thing to covet another person, or their stuff, but it is also very tempting and oftentimes we don't realize we do it.  The harm was very apparent in this story but in real life, we don't always realize its harm until later.

The story of Drashup and the goddesses:
This story is pretty sad.  It starts off all the sad descriptions of Drashup and why everyone should feel super sorry for him and then his wife dies at the end.  That guy most have one of the most terrible lives.  And the fact that the wife did something bad when her husband was gone reminds me of the Aladdin story since the women just weren't informed of the reasoning behind their husbands' actions.

Cute yet cunning fox

Source:  Wikipedia

Extra Reading Diary: Georgian Folk Tales

Georgian Folk Tales:

Master and Pupil:
This is a slightly scary slightly creative story.  Making a deal with the devil - never a safe sort of thing.  I know it's just a story, but I'm surprised the boy was (or seemed to be) so composed the whole time.  I'm glad the boy could return home to his family.  Additionally, he could morph into animals which is pretty cool!

Fate:
Wow! What a story - I definitely did not see the ending coming (maybe I should have).  The whole premise - the weaver who was very poor (I thought he had nobody with him besides his daughter yet the daughter said her mother took care of her injury after the stabbing?), the prince who all the girls desired, and this strong sense of fate.  I wonder if the prince ever told his new wife the truth about what happened or if he was too afraid that she would not forgive him.

The Two Brothers:
This is a sad ending. The boy got dragged out in the end by a bear.  There's a lot of sad endings in these folk tales that I've noticed...what's up with that?  Maybe that's the biggest differences between folk and fairy tales?  Folk tales don't have to have happy endings and fairy tales usually do?

The Shepherd Judge:
This judge is certainly impressive.  It reminds me of Solomon(?) in the Bible since similarly, there were two people who had a major dispute and it didn't seem like there could be a good way to solve it but sure enough, the judge solved the problem and everyone who saw it was amazed.

Georgia:  The Priest's Youngest Son:
Based off the title, I'm guessing this is the story behind the founder of the people since he has the same name as the region/nation? Anyways, this story is nice and happy - I like it! It stinks that not all the brothers could pay enough respect to their deceased father and read to him, but at least the youngest son did it.  It's great he got a reward, but I think that based off his character, he would have done it anyways.  I'm glad he got to marry the princess and was able to heal his mother-in-law.

A white horse - this is what I picture the priest's youngest son riding when he goes to see the princess

Source:  Wikipedia

Week 5 Storytelling: Ghostbusters

Once upon a time, there were a husband and wife duo who frequently bickered.  The husband was a humble man who worked hard performing manual labor daily despite his growing age whilst his wife remained at home cooking, sewing, and socializing with other women.  One day, the wife lost her temper completely and throwing her pots and pans in her husband's direction yelled, "You don't provide for me - if I could go back in time, perhaps I would have remained with my father and mother...at least then I always had a big meal to eat and could heat the house freely.  But you barely make enough to buy flour for the bread!" The husband, blinking away tears, looked down at the ground and slowly walked out of the house.  Hurt but determined, he sought to find a better paying job to have in addition, or maybe in place of, his current occupation.  While walking down the road, he saw something white to the right of him.  When he looked, he couldn't believe his eyes! He saw a ghost!  "The government thought they got rid of them all," the man thought.  The man took a photo of the ghost and thought out loud, "Maybe, if I show this to the police, they'll pay me a reward for staying quiet and providing proof that they're not all gone!" The ghost knew this would mean his demise so he urged the man - if you be quiet, I'll give you an even greater reward! The man, realizing the profit he could gain, made a deal with the ghost, was paid, and sought to find even more ghosts.  Luckily, he did.  Just like that, he became a professional ghost hunter and made a lot of money.  It wasn't until years later that he could tell others about his stories and adventures, but we'll save that for another time.  As for his wife, when he returned with money, she apologized profusely before she even realized how much money her husband had made.  She made a promise to be more supportive and they were much happier from then on.

Author's Note:  My story is based off The Ghost who was Afraid of being Bagged from the Folktales of Bengals which were collected by Lal Behari Day from storytellers in the early 20th century.  I wanted to make the story more modern and change up the ending a bit.  The plot line itself has some different details but overall, the story is the same.

Haunted chateau (2009)

Source:  Wikipedia

Reading Diary B: Folktales of Bengal

Folktales of Bengal:

A Ghostly Wife:
Is this story the same guy for the previous story?  It has the same ghost theme, the man is a brahman, and he lives with both his wife and mother... Anyways, if so, what an unfortunate couple.  It's a good thing that the mother started to notice differences and that she chose to not say anything to the ghost but to confirm her suspicions with her son in order to not set off the supernatural.

The Origin of Rubies:
Man, parents who spoil one child and disregard the rest don't realize the harm.  Not only does the spoiled child grow up with serious behavior problems that have now grown pretty much permanent, but the other children and that child will not be able to get along.  Anyways, same idea for this story.  I'm anticipating the siblings to come into play somewhere.  I wonder if the king of the great land is doing that to his daughter.  Anyways, I wonder if the queen and her son have thought about going home yet... The other sons must be wondering where they are.

The Origin of Rubies (ctd):  
So this is an interesting ending - I did not see it coming.  I expected the prince to die searching for rubies or to get detained while getting more rubies but no, he gets two beautiful women as wives?  What in the world! I definitely did not expect that.  Anyways, it's definitely a creative ending - I did not see that happening.  Sort of gross imagery with the whole head separate from the body and the blood being the rubies - blah!

The Ghost who was afraid of being Bagged:
This story starts off sad but gets very interesting at the end.  In the beginning, I was very much saddened by the fact that the wife did not support the husband but abused him physically, verbally, and emotionally.  I admire the husband, however, for not leaving her altogether on the spot but doing some self-examination and realizing that he probably could/should support his wife better.  Kudos to the husband for roping two ghosts in to help him get rich.  That was pretty great!

A medieval ghost by Gallowglass

Source:  Wikipedia

Reading Diary A: Folk Tales of Bengal

Folk Tales of Bengal:

The Evil Eye of Sani:
Oooh wow, this is an intense story! First of all, I didn't realize there were gods and goddesses of good/bad luck but I should have figured - I feel like people have made deities for almost everything.  As for deciding who is higher in rank, I thought it was interesting they considered a mere mortal wise enough to decide.  The poor man must be so nervous - he really is caught in quite the bind.  At least his wife is sticking by his side - that means a lot.

The Evil Eye of Sani (ctd):
Wow, this poor couple.  Although they do is work smarter than everyone else and they profit (they deserve it) and now everyone hates them...great.  It's awful that his wife is held captive.  That guy must be stressed out so much - I mean not only will a god and/or goddess absolutely destroy his life no matter what his decision is, and now he no longer has the love of his life.

The Boy whom Seven Mothers Suckled:
This story is sort of crazy.  First of all, what a crazy phenomena to have a fruit that allows all the wives to become pregnant.  Then, some crazy yet pretty lady convinces his king that not only blinding his old wives isn't enough but he would also need to kill them.  Thus, they turn to cannibalism?  This is crazy!!

The Boy whom Seven Mothers Suckled (end):
The ending is comparably strange as the beginning.  The queen eats up everyone at night... I wonder why she wanted the boy to be eaten so bad - it's not like she wanted the taste, I mean she was going to let her mom have him.  Did she know that the boy was the son of one of the mothers that she wanted killed?  Anyways, the boy turns out to be some sort of a hero at the end.  I wonder what happens to all the ex-wives.  I wonder if the poor king suspected any of this.

The Ghost-Brahman:
This story is pretty interesting.  I'm suprised that the author even thought of it.  A ghost that appears real enough that it loves as a husband and a son for years?  And then a king that doesn't fulfill his duties but instead a fake cowboy-king that rules the case?  Pretty interesting! I liked this story.

Cowboys Roping a Bear by James Walker (circa 1877)

Source:  Wikipedia

Week 4 Storytelling: Modern Al

Al was a bright young eight year old boy living in a shack in New York City.  He was a kind and friendly boy who helped out while he could but was eager to learn.  One summer, he was playing outside with a flat soccer ball he had found when a man walked up the road and started talking to him.  Al was a very social boy and easily struck up a conversation with the man.  Before he knew it, he was playing soccer with the man and when Al got a determined look on his face and ran up the road to catch the ball, the man suddenly gasped, "You look just like my brother!" Al smiled and asked, "Well, what happened to him?"  The man explained his brother's fate and at first, Al was sympathetic but then began to relate.  After all, his father had also run errands late one night and never came back.  The police suspected foul play, but nothing was ever determined.  As the man began to describe his brother, it became more and more apparent that the man's brother seemed like Al's father.  The two of them excitedly ran back to the shack to talk to Al's mother.  The man instantly recognized the woman and the two of them embraced and chatted happily, catching up after 10 years.  Al's long-lost uncle spent the night in the shack and in the morning, told Al's mother that he had a fun, summer adventure in mind to keep Al occupied for the day.  The mother agreed and knew that Al needed something fun and out-of-the-ordinary in order to have some resemblance of a childhood.  Al's uncle led him to Ellis Island were there were some rocks forming small niches.  In one of the niches, something glinted inside.  Al's uncle told him that if he climbed inside, he might find buried treasure buried underneath the small glinting piece of metal on the surface.  Al clambered inside and soon found himself to be trapped and the waves started to crash onto the rocks as the sun set.  The uncle left him behind and Al was alone, nervous, and disoriented.  Before long, the waves washed some of the small pebbles off of the metal object and it turned out to be a lamp. Al hugged it close to his chest, scared of what was to come and when he did, the lamp began to get warm and shake.  Within the next minute or so, a genie burst forth and spoke to Aladdin.  Thinking he was dreaming, Aladdin responded without thinking much about it and was rescued.

Author's Note:  I based my story off of Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp part 1 from the Arabian Nights unit which is from the book One Thousand and One Nights translated by Richard Francis Burton and published in 1885 as The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night.

Aladdin depiction by online artist Shelziru

Source:  Deviant Art

Week 3 Storytelling: Sneaky Criminals

It was a rainy and cold day in 1850.  Three robbers and an elderly woman were gathered around a small table in the corner of a crowded pub.  As they whispered plans to one another, their server brought them a loaf of rye bread and a slab of aged cheese.  When the server caught wind of the word "kidnap" murmured, he couldn't help but quickly look up and then tried to look down naturally in order to play it off.  The criminals noticed what had happened and told the boy to meet them behind the restaurant.  The server assumed they were going to pay him off to stay quiet so he followed them out back.  Within seconds, the robbers and the woman were face-to-face with a mule instead of a young man.  They high-fived each other while transferring their gold and luggage from their trusty, but exhausted, horse to the mule they now had. Through the pouring rain, the four of them invited the biting cold as they walked to a neighboring hotel and carried out the next part of their plan.

The robbers were informed by a doorman at the hotel that a wealthy diplomat and his daughter were staying in the hotel for the weekend.  The robbers winked at the doormen while he slipped them a key as they entered the hotel and walk casually up the stairs to the third floor.  They saw the diplomat's daughter just leaving her room and they sneaked out from around the corner and bound her from behind while pressing their dirty hands against her mouth to keep her silent.  Completely shocked, the girl did not even have time to resist and the men and the elderly woman pulled her along as they whisked her away into their own hotel room.  The girl was obviously shaken and tried to reason with the criminals but to no avail.  In order to keep her from asking too many questions, the old woman tried to distract her by telling her a story.

Author's Note:  My storytelling post is based off of The Captive Woman that is a part of Apuleius's "Cupid and Psyche" story from The Golden Ass.  The story was translated by Tony Kline.  I chose this story because I thought it was interesting and didn’t require too much background to re-tell.  For example, I didn’t want to do a later story from the unit because I thought the reader might have been more confused.  I wanted to make the story a little bit more modern but also make it based in the past enough to allow a picture of gas-lanterns, high-profile criminals, and dreary nights set in.  I kept the idea of the story the same but just added in different details/imagery.  For example, there was no mention of a pub where the criminals discussed their plans – I wanted to add that in as well as the dreary night so the feeling of suspense would hopefully be felt.  Also, the time period was a bit later than when the original story was written.  My version was set in the 1800s when I imagine gas lanterns were used and criminals were more able to run rampant.  I chose the image that I did in order to provide a face to the criminals.  Although I found these pictures on my own and they’re not from the story, I thought they would do the job. 

 

Two criminals - a couple of the kidnappers may have looked like this.

Source:  Wikipedia

Extra Reading Diary: Santal Folklore

Santal Folklore:

Ledha and the Leopard:
Wow, what a story.  Ledha must have been terrified.  He was a clever boy, though, for crinkling the tobacco leaves so the leopard thought it was the lizard again.  It's also ironic that the princess wanted Ledha to marry her rather than vice versa.

The Monkey and the Girl:
This was a super weird story.  First off, clever monkey - befriending the children by leaving the flower farland behind.  But then, she wants to marry the monkey?  Can they even communicate?  And then she blinds the bystanders with sands and burns herself with the monkey?  That is some messed up stuff.  Wow. Very unique story, however.

Ramai and the Animals:
This is a sweet story.  The animal rescue tale reminds me of the saints/animals unit I read earlier.  I think it's neat that there's no deceit in their story but a simple moral which is refreshing.  If the father hadn't gone and killed the other animals, there's no telling what other valuables he could have had, but the ring was definitely nice.

The Ghormuhas:
Nasty cannibals - that poor boy must have been scarred for life.  I wonder if this story was based on any events such as real-life cannibals that the author may have known about or anything.  I'm surprised that the Ghormuhas could not jump well even though they captured the boy so easily in the first place and even raced across fields.

The Raibar and the Leopard:
I like this story as well - no deceit; just a clever raibar and a leopard who kept his promise.  It surprised me that the leopard remained in the sack so quietly despite being whacked and also being thrown in the water.  I'm surprised he didn't drown.  The leopards did not seem to be very smart at all.

The Raja's Dream:
So far, this is a cool story.  It sort of reminds me of a couple Bible stories with the idea that one wife thought the other wife's son would take presidence so one was sent away and also with the dream interpretation.  The story is slightly more confusing than the others with the older/younger Rani thing, but overall, it is very read-able and I appreciate the modern language.

The Jackal and the Crow:
Wow, this is a relatively sad tale.  I feel bad for the crow first of all.  Being eaten by your friend would be pretty terrible - absolute betrayal.  Then, the jackal seemed to get power "hungry" and ate so many animals.  I don't like that he died - I would have preferred that he got sick from over-eating so we could see him change and become a better animal but oh well.

Amur leopard

Source:  Wikipedia

Reading Diary B: Arabian Nights

Arabian Nights:

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp 1:
This story was a fun read so far.  It's a nice idea that young Aladdin will gain a trade but really sad that a selfish magician would manipulate a family that already has so little.  Poor Aladdin being left in the dark for two days - his mother must have been worried sick.  Not only was it sad to be left alone, but it would also be sad to go back to the mother and tell her that the relative she thought was now alive was in fact not alive and was just a con artist.

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp 2:
Wow, Aladdin seems a bit obsessive.  Sort of scary.  I feel like he is way head over heels and frightened the poor princess but didn't seem to comfort her - he just fell asleep beside her.  It was terrible that the sultan did not keep his word and wait three months, though, before he gave his daughter's hand away.

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp 3:
Aww, I really like this story.  Aladdin was so humble, patient, and respected the princess enough to wait on marrying her in order to make sure she would have a nice home ready.  That's really sweet.  It's also great that the Sultan kept his word but also wasn't too desperate to give his daughter away to anyone.  I feel like most, if not all, vizirs in this unit are evil though - what's up with that?  Anyways, I really like how even when Aladdin started winning battles and gaining fame, he was humble and showed respect where it was due.

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp 4:
This was so sad.  It's not the princess's fault really, but the magician just can't leave him alone.  If he left the lamp in the cave in the first place, he musn't need it.  Jealousy makes people do some crazy things.  The poor princess must be terrified.  Also, it must have been quite a sight to have the palace all of a sudden disappear.

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp 6:
Wow, that was a bit crazy, too.  I wonder how the roc's egg would have killed them and how the genie knew it was the evil magician's younger brother who was in disguise.  I think it's sweet that Aladdin would have done even that for his wife.  He really seems to love her.

The first magician traps young Aladdin in a magical cave

Source:  Wikipedia

Reading Diary A: Arabian Nights

Arabian Nights:

Scheherazade:
To start off, it's interesting that the Sultan loves his wife so immensely yet she is struggling to stay alive via telling stories.  Hopefully the story will shed more clarification on this - that was just one of my first thoughts as I read the first couple sentences of the story.  I wonder how she deceived him so extremely... What a clever girl.  It's sad her own father would stab her with a dagger though just because of orders.  It's his daughter for crying out loud.  Wow, such obedience.

The Merchant and the Genius:
Wow - this was a very creative story.  I wonder if the girl made up the story on the spot or if she knew the story already.  I already see plenty of parallels between the death sentence of the man and the genie postponing the man's death sentence as was the circumstances for the girl.  I wonder how many of those there will be and if the sultan notices this as well.

The Story of the First Old Man and of the Hind:
So far the story is pretty fascinating.  The man did not have an heir so he adopted his slave's son but was unaware his wife had such a dislike for the mother?  Wow.  So she turns to witchcraft?  Lots of crazy elements involved here.  It's neat that the stories fit so well together and because the stories are so in-depth, I have to remind myself that all these stories are really told by a girl trying to save her life.

The Story of the Second Old Man, and of the Two Black Dogs:
This story is easier to read for me than the story of the first old man.  It was such an act of love for the second old man to close up his shop and pay such attention and give such love to his older brother who was now a beggar.  That couldn't have been easy, emotionally or financially.  Anyways, his sense of forgivness is amazing - the brothers took his money, tried to take his wife and his life, and then he still begged for the fairy to keep them alive.

The Greek King and the Physician Douban:
This is a neat story.  I find it strange that the physician/king didn't think he was using medicine to cure him but said so himself that the potion in the club would make his body glow warm - isn't that medicine in a way just put in a club?  And he told the king that? Anyways, is whereever each story cuts off another day that the girl waits to tell the next part of the story to stay alive?

The Story of the Parrot:
It sort of makes me chuckle that so many of the stories (including the story of the 1001 Arabian  Nights) starts off with saying how much the husband loved the wife.  Is the girl hoping that her husband will subconsciously adopt this passion/care for her?

The Physician's Revenge:
Wow, that's terrible the physican had to be executed.  I wonder what the king's advisor had against physicians.  I mean why kill him when he's done no wrong unless the guy truly believed there was no good in the world and the physician was evil.  So sad.

The Story of the Young King of the Black Isles:
This is sort of a crazy story.  This is the second story that I've read from this unit about a wife deceiving her husband.  The poor guy... Anyways, it's terrible that she beat him so much yet treated the slave so well.  I wonder how they grew so affectionate.  It's an interesting punishment to turn her husband into half marble, half man - creative.

An illustration of Arabian Nights

Source:  Wikipedia

Extra Reading Diary: Women Saints of the Golden Legend

Women Saints of the Golden Legend:  

Saint Juliana:
The notes before this story were very helpful - especially when it explained words that I would encounter and probably wouldn't have known the definitions of.  Anyways, Juliana is quite a brave woman.  It must have been really hard for her to go against her father and new husband without having much support from a physical being alongside her (although she had support from God).  I'm also impressed that she was able to speak so calmly and rationally to the devil - I would have been shaking and probably passed out from fear.

Saint Mary of Egypt: 
I like the connection to Zosimus but had some trouble understanding the story with the older-type language.  I liked the pictures though :)

Saint Pelagien:
I admire this woman a lot, but I find it sort of ironic that to follow God she felt like she had to lie/deceive others by pretending to be a man.  I'm surprised that when she was accused of getting one of the virgins pregnant that she didn't try to prove her innocence by showing her true identity - that must have been a tempting thought.

Saint Margaret:
The notes are super informative and remind me of both Saint Juliana and the Screwtape Letters (a book by C.S. Lewis where the devil also explains how he tempts mankind).  I think it's crazy that this guy wants to marry Margaret because of her beauty but throws her in prison so quick - doesn't seem like the way to a woman's heart to me.  She had to undergo so much torture and suffering - it's insane.  I can't believe people stood for it.  I wonder if she ever mentally waivered or if she was confident in Christ the whole time.  Hopefully the latter.  No matter what religion (or lack thereof) someone may believe in, it's always amazing to see their perseverence in his/her beliefs to the point of death sometimes.

Saint Christine:
I wonder how Christine came to Christianity if she was locked away.  Maybe a chamberer secretly led her to faith?  Anyways, it's quite amazing.

Saint Helena

Source: Wikipedia

This was a great unit - I wish I did my first two reading diaries on this unit.  It was sad yet powerful.  I was humbled by the perseverence of these women in what they believed in and how far they went in the name of God.  I wish these stories were more well-known since they are indeed so powerful.

Reading Diary B: Apuleius's Cupid and Psyche

Apuleius's Cupid and Psyche:

Venus and the goddesses:

Poor Cupid - he fell for this girl and now not only is he facing pain, but he is also facing backlash from his mother instead of emotional support in his time of need.  It's interesting that she's venting to a bird, though.  I get she's frustrated, but her son is already in such emotional pain right now.  I feel like that is punishment enough for him if that's what she's looking for.  

Psyche's Prayer:  

I think that it's amusing that there's a "sacred couch."  I could see there being a sacred temple or altar but a couch?  It just made me chuckle.  Can all the mortals communicate so freely with the gods and goddesses or is it just Psyche?  I was really surprised when she had an actual conversation with her.  Of course, this is just a story so perhaps in real life this wasn't expected but the story needed a conversation.  It's really sad that the goddesses couldn't help her.  She must feel so much despair and fear.  Will Cupid not step up and just protect her?  I know they're not on the best terms but it's his wife - I feel like he should be at least trying to take care of her.  

Venus and Psyche:

I understand Venus is frustrated, but I can't believe she had her pregnant daughter-in-law flogged! Does Cupid know about this?  But the fact that it said Venus went to the marriage feast means Venus didn't call it off so maybe approves to some degree?  She obviously isn't overjoyed about it.  Poor Psyche trying to do all this work - this isn't good for her, especially being pregnant.  I'm glad she had some help but still.  I feel like Venus would almost be more mad that she got it done considering it would be impressive.

Psyche's Next Task:

Golden sheep - neat! I'm glad Psyche got some help for that one, too.  She could have been killed! A reed helped her though?  Aren't those almost like wheat stalks - plants/sticks growing out of the ground?  Anyways, I can't imagine how Psyche must be feeling.  Missing her husband, miserable and mistreated by Venus, away from home, and other things.  Wow.

Task Accomplished:

Again, so nice and amazing that Psyche had help.  That was a very scary situation.  I think it's interesting that none of the creatures who helped her felt like they were betraying Venus although when Psyche tried to seek help earlier from the goddesses they would not help her in fear that it would be betraying Venus.  

"Venus Punishing Psyche with a Task" by Luca Giordano

Source:  Wikipedia

English Fairy Tales, United! (Styles Brainstorm)

Topic: My topic for my storybook this semester will be based off of English fairy tales. I hope that at least two of my stories have been heard of before, that way if I change them, it will be especially interesting for the reader. My other two stories will hopefully be new stories to the reader so that they will have some unknown material to read.

Bibliography:

1) English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacob (1890):  This is where I pulled the Fairy Ointment story from that I really enjoyed!

2) More English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs (1894)

Possible Styles:

One possible style is to do the storybook from the perspective of a fairy that would provide first person narrative throughout the storybook.  The fairy could be directly involved some of the stories but also provide an opportunity to provide her own interesting thoughts on stories we already know that may not involve fairies (e.g. The Three Little Pigs).

Painting of a fairy by Sophia Gengembre Anderson (1869).  The painting is called "Take the Fair Face of Woman, and Gently Suspending, With Butterflies, Flowers, and Jewels Attending, Thus Your Fairy is Made of Most Beautiful Things"

Source:  Wikipedia

Another idea is to have a group of characters (not all human) gathered around as friends and each one tries to tell their best story in order to win a prize (I'd have to come up with a fun, magical, fairy tale-type prize - think: Canterbury Tales).  This would be third person but would have plenty of dialogue of people chiming in.  

An additional cool storytelling idea is a mother telling her young children the fairy tales so the children and mother could chime in continually to add extra dialogue throughout the stories.  I think there could be a lot of potential for humor ehere since little kids by nature tend to say funny things.  There was someone in my Indian Epics class who did this last semester and I would definitely want to make sure to vary from that, but I really like how they wrote their story - it was cute, funny, and reminded me of my own fond childhood memories.  This would most likely to 3rd person although it could also be first person from the mother's perspective.   

My final possible style is to do the storybook from the prespective of a newscaster.  The newscaster could cover each story in third person in an informative format.  The newscaster could direct the attention to someone "on the scene" and the storybook could flip from the anchor to the newscaster on site.  Although I think this is a unique idea, I'm not so sure it would be the most fun to read.  Being able to flip between people's perspectives (the anchor and on-site newscaster) could provide more than one perspective, however, which could be neat.  

Reading Diary A: Apuleius's Cupid and Psyche

Apuleius's Cupid and Psyche:

The Captive Woman:
First off, I really appreciated the notes that were before the story to help provide context, especially since the story was not written in modern tongue so it was a little bit tricky to get used to.  Wow, this was an intense scene, though. First, it was sad that the poor girl was kidnapped but at least teh robbers tried to console her in a way and did not threaten her, but the old lady was mean.  I can't imagine she helped calm down the girl any more.  I wonder where the old lady came from.  Was she the mother of one of the thieves or one day was she kidnapped?

Her Dream:
Oh, it's her mother.  Okay, that makes a little bit more sense now.  Or is it just an expression?  Because she refers to being snatched from her mother's arms and carried away so this old lady couldn't be her mother?

Psyche's Beauty and the Anger of Venus:
Wow, yeah Venus sounds like such a jealous person.  Of course, she doesn't want to be mistaken for a mere mortal, but I find it quite excessive that she curse her to falling for the most "wretched of men."  Also, this is probably obvious, but I don't know much about myths and folklore so I didn't realize that Cupid was Venus's son which is pretty neat.

The Magical Palace:
I love the beautiful imagery of this place and how it was found when Psyche was so upset since it made her day a little better.  I think it's interesting there's not a lock or chain to keep people out and wonder if she's the only who can see it.  It's neat that food and nectar suddenly appeared before her, but I can't help but think that'd scare me a bit.

Psyche's Husband Warns Her:
This scene could strengthen or greatly hurt the relationship between Psyche and her husband.  So much is on the line and what Psyche's husband tells her has huge implications.  I wonder if Psyche had ever doubted her sisters before.  Surely she knew they were jealous of her while they all grew up together.  It's so exciting Psyche is going to have a baby but wow, that must be really hard with the stress of these threats her husband is informing her of as well as being on her own during the day.

Psyche's Husband Revealed:
Wow, what a revelation for Psyche! I feel bad for Cupid - trusting a mortal and then having that trust destroyed when she lit the lamp and figured out who he was.  I wonder if Psyche wishes she never knew who he was or if she's glad she did it.

Psyche and Amor, also referred to as Psyche Receiving Cupid's First Kiss by Francois Gerard (1798)

Source:  Wikipedia

Myth-Folklore Topics Brainstorm

My first topic idea is the Stories from the Faerie Queen by Mary Macleod (1916).  I think it’d be really interesting to explore because there’s so much that can be done with the tales considering that they include princes, knights, ladies, and castles.  I think it’d be really fun to play up a story like that considering at one point, almost everyone was interested in royalty and medieval times.  I’d love to explore the day-to-day life of princes/princesses since that is not explored as often as their big adventures and exploring the day-to-day life of royalty opens up the possibility for lots of creativity.  The first story of the unit is about Sir Guyon and it starts “after the capture of the wicked enchantress” so I think that I could provide a lot of background to add to the story since it’s not provided by the unit.  However, other online sources have stories included before the Britomart unit that I could explore to provide more stories that the UnTextbook wouldn’t necessarily have.  This would be neat because even for people in the class who’ve read this unit, the stories before the Britomart unit would probably be new to them.  Anyways, I’d love to talk about how Prince Arthur and Sir Guyon were perhaps not originally friends and how it came to be that they’d work together… I think there’s a lot of potential right there.   Another possible backstory could be that Elizabeth I was reading the poem The Faerie Queen and commenting throughout my storybook because apparently she read the poem version (The Faerie Queen) and highly enjoyed it so it’d be neat if I incorporated her as a narrator somehow. 

Another topic idea is the Brothers Grimm (by Lucy and Walter Crane, 1886).  For one, some of the original stories are already known so it’d be fun to completely twist them and make them new again.  Also, they are a bit longer so it’d provide plenty of opportunities to change the story without worry of it being too short.  Also, there are children’s stories as well as more grown-up stories that would provide a nice variety so more than just children are appealed to.  I’d love to make the stories much more modern but also make sure to convey the original message.  The Robber-Bridegroom for example is definitely not a children’s tale, but I think I could modernize it by making it so that a father wants to set his daughter up with a “nice boy,” but she gets constant warnings from her friends and ends up exposing him for who he really is.  I’d love to emphasize the morals of all of these stories, and I think I could do so in a more relatable, modern way. 

Another unit I’d love to explore is English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs (1890).  I think the unit is appealing because like the Brothers Grimm stories, many of them are already known and loved stories.  Similar to the Brothers Grimm unit, I’d really enjoy taking stories that are known so well and changing them in a new and exciting way.  For example, the story of the three little pigs doesn’t have to be a story about pigs at all but could be a story about three different young women who all wanted a guy’s attention but instead of the wolf blowing down their houses it could be that their true sides were known and only one woman was genuinely kind?? I’m not exactly sure, but I’d love to make the story completely different.  I’ve looked up re-tellings of the story and the ones I saw still used pigs but some incorporated Little Red Riding Hood so I think my story could be so different and pretty neat.   I also really liked the story of the Fairy Ointment and could perhaps use that story as well to show that things are not always as they seem. 

My final topic idea for now is Robin Hood found in The English and Scottish Popular Ballads as collected by Francis James Child.  I appreciate how the Robin Hood unit is more of a long continuous story than different selected, non-overlapping tales.  Like the other topics, I’d love to completely re-do this one and do a more modern telling.  I’d love to focus on the relationship between Little John and Robin Hood and focus on their strong friendship, and maybe rather than Robin Hood disguising himself as a butcher or a monk, I’d love to disguise him as an accountant or a businessman which is more modern and are also occupations that would deal with money since Robin Hood could use that resource to help the poor.  Another fun story I could incorporate would be Maid Marian since I really enjoy love stories.  That way, I could appeal to those who love romance but also by nature, Robin Hood is quite adventurous.  It could even be cool if the narrator was an FBI agent looking for Robin Hood and how he gradually saw that his deeds were for good and was changed by his actions… There’s lots of re-tellings of Robin Hood through cartoons, books, and movies, and many of them focus on different things.  Although re-telling this story runs the risk of sounding like all the others, I think I could put a fun, unique spin on it.


I'm adding this on later so this isn't really a part of this blogpost but for week 3, I started Cupid's unit and really like it so far and maybe want to do it for my storybook.  I like how it's similar to Beauty and the Beast and would maybe set up the story as a dating show and have a girl go on dates with different guys but eventually fall for one of them.  The original story was written by Apuleius and (titled The Golden Ass) and translated by Tony Cline.  Although this wasn't originally one of my ideas, since starting to read it for my reading diary, I'm really interested in making this a part of my storybook in a love story format.

Robin Hood was important in popular culture, including in comics.

Source:  Wikipedia

Extra Reading Diary: Saints and Animals

Saints and Animals:  

Saint Blaise and His Beasts:
This is a neat story! I like how it's a reciprocal relationship between the saint and the animals - he heals them and they bring him food.  It's neat how even the emperor and soldiers recognized that the wild beasts would not hurt him.  I don't like the ending though how after he walked on water, he was beheaded...
Saint Comgall and the Mice:
I like how the author explains what Comgall means and speaks directly to the reader telling them that it is interesting.  When the author makes a point about peanuts not being invented yet, it makes me think that when this tale was written, that was a very popular food that perhaps people carried around in their pockets? Anyways, I love how the author included stories about both the mice and the swans - very cool! I wonder if Croadh would have gone after Comgall since he indirectly caused this.
The Wonders of Saint Berach:
This story is pretty neat! I really like how the saint helped the cow and wolf both meet their needs but also reconcile via love and not revenge.  I also think it's very neat that he was able to save a young boy's life and that even though the boys at the end of the story made fun of him, he was not ill-natured and merely taught them a lesson without being cruel or excessive about it.  I'm glad the rich man was not allowed to destroy the monastery.  I'm also glad the king saw him as a holy man and not a warlock or anything to do with witchcraft.
The Fish Who Helped Saint Gudwall:
I like the background on the story (the terrible storms) as well as explaining the mindset (it wasn't highly regarded to value one's own life amidst danger).  It was confusing though when the Gudwall's friend moved into a new house but then they set off to find a place to live?  I love the description of the waves crashing on the rocks.  The author is so talented at describing the sea - very impressive! I love the imagery of this story but wish there was more of a story on the fish building them a defense.

Animals at Sturtmoor Pond

Source:  Wikipedia

Week 2 Storytelling: The Mystical Butterfly

Once upon a time, there was an elderly couple who knew their time was coming to an end.  Knowing that their son had given everything he had to help them, they were worried that he would not be able to make ends meet for his own family once the parents passed away.  With this realization weighing on them, they sought the counsel of a wise family friend who was very close to the elderly couple.  The family friend advised them, “Do not worry. When the time comes, send your son to me and I will make sure he is taken care of.”  The elderly couple thought this meant that the son would be employed by the family friend and thanked the man graciously.  A few days later, the elderly couple passed away with the son holding their hands and saying prayers for them as they went.  Right before their eyes closed, the father of the young man told him to go see the wise family friend within a week.  The young man nodded with tears in his eyes and broke down sobbing when the two took their last breath.  A week later, the young man put on the best outfit he could find and set off to find the family friend.  He found him in his shop selling all sorts of knick-knacks and explained to the man that his parents instructed him to find the man.  The man smiled and told the young man, “I have just the thing for you.”  Confused and bewildered, the young man had given the man $1000 before he even realized what had happened and had a silver teapot in return.   When he returned home, he kept his head down knowing finances were tight and his poor wife and children didn’t have very much money left, only this teapot and a couple hundred dollars.  His wife thought the grief of his parents’ passing was getting to his head and gently rubbed his shoulders while he sat down silently.  They opened the teapot to find a caterpillar inside.  The children were fascinated by the insect so the young man and his wife decided to keep it as a pet and fed it so the children could see it transform into a butterfly one day and provide them hope.  Every day they fed the caterpillar before they fed themselves, and one day, the caterpillar broke out of its cocoon and transformed into a butterfly.  To the parents’ dismay, it flew away, but from that day forward, random gems, herbs, and firewood appeared on their doorstep.  When their house had been filled with valuables, the butterfly returned.  The whole thing seemed quite mysterious and the family attributed their good will to the insect to the good riches nature had poured upon them.

Author's Note:  This story is a re-telling of The Fairy Frog which is from Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends by Gertrude Landa (1919).  I chose this story because I liked the idea of the couple loving their elderly parents for as long as they could and faithfully following their instructions even though it seemed like a bleak option in the beginning.  It also showed how much the young couple trusted each other and stayed together thorugh the good and bad.  I chose to do a more modern re-telling of the story because I thought it would be more relatable to the reader. For instance, the original story had a market in it and those aren't as common today.  Also, I chose to use a butterfly as the creature to bless the couple instead of a frog.  I chose a butterfly because I felt like there was a lot of imagery – the cocoon may not seem very hopeful and is not very beautiful but when given enough time, a beautiful butterfly emerges as the couple emerged to be rewarded for their generous nature.  Overally, I really liked the message so I tried to keep that the same even though details such as those listed above were changed.

A viceroy butterfly, similar to the one that the family may have taken care of.

Source:  Wikipedia

Reading Diary B: Jewish Fairy Tales

Jewish Fairy Tales:

The Magic Palace:
The man who was to proud to ask for help reminds me of a few people that I know.  I think that for his wife and sons' sakes he could swallow his pride and ask for help or at least seek a job before they starved.  Actually getting a job is not always an option, but I feel like the guy could try before his family starved.  But anyways, being emotionally devastated can make it hard to do these things and I understand that.  I'm not trying to be hard on this guy, sorry if it sounds that way.  Anyways, I'm glad his wife was supportive and even talked to the neighbors on behalf, and it's really cool that the Arab allowed himself to be sold for the man.  What a fun twist for the story!

The Sleep of One Hundred Years:
It's neat that the rabbi was looking for those more needy than him, but why pass up the man whose vineyard was destroyed?  The man has to start over and currently has no income... Onias was sad but not sad enough?  It's so strange yet cool that the guy slept for so long?  Realistically, if his camel rotted and just now has a skeleton left, the man shouldn't be alive but man, it's neat to read about how the carob trees have taken over the land.  How gorgeous it must look!  Plus, a new Onias! Crazy.  This guy must be so caught up in disbelief...

The Higgledy-Piggledy Palace:
Ooooh, I really liked this story.  It's really neat how Abraham and Sarah did not waiver in their faith but trusted God when it seemed like nothing could make the situation better.  Pharoah should have learned not to mess with them - he had no idea what hit him.  The title of the story is fun, too! This is a great passage to read and I highly enjoyed it.

The Rabbi's Bogey-Man:
This story's a little crazy! A machine, made in the medieval times, that is given life by a name written on a scroll?!? Super cool to read about! I think it's interesting that he made a female first.  It's too bad what happened.  I'm surprised she fascinated people rather than scare them.  I can't imagine she was a pretty sight.  When the male bogey-man wanted to make an army it reminded me of today's fears with robots, but at least the robot wanted to fight for the king.  However, really crazy, sad, and wrong that it wanted to kill all the Jews.  And this is a Jewish fairy tale?  That's surprising!

The Fairy Frog:
Awww - this is such a sweet story! It's crazy how everything happened... I'm sure at points the son and his wife were questioning the parents, but I love how it ended! So cool! I feel like it may have been suspicious when they appeared with everything and I wonder if the merchant realized what he was selling.  Probably not but maybe since it was costly?  Although, that may have been the price for the silver thing he had bought in the market.

A Leaf Green Tree Frog 

Source:  Wikipedia

Reading Diary A: Jewish Fairy Tales

Jewish Fairy Tales

The Giant of the Flood:
To be honest, it made me laugh that according to this tale, Noah wanted a unicorn.  I don't know when the idea of this mythical creature began, but it just seems really funny to me that unicorns and giants are involved in this tale that seems serious in many other aspects. Not only was there a unicorn, but it was the size of a mountain?  Good luck fitting that on the boat Noah.  Oh, as I read on, I see the plan - let the unicorn swim alongside the boat.  If that was so possible, I wonder why other animals wouldn't do that and survive instead of be killed...  It's such a beautiful picture to imagine that the bright stones illuminated the ark - I can only imagine it to be a more primal form of stained glass and what a sight it must have been.  I find it unique that although the giant knew that Noah prophesied truth, he still somewhat blackmailed him with the unicorn feeding.  It is such a unique ending.  I have read Bible stories many times and how it pulls in both Noah and Moses is impressive and interesting.

The Beggar King:
The title of this story already has me intrigued.  A king that begs...what? Anyways, it's so cool that a genie lured the king via a deer disguise.  Also, it's interesting to me that the genie looked like a youth - for whatever reason, I have always imagined genies as looking older.  Perhaps it's because older people seem wiser.  I also think that it's interesting that upon insulting the Holy Book, which I assume to be the Bible, a genie showed up rather than an angel or something.  I think the genie showed the king how to live in a really cool way, but I wouldn't say it was by using magical genie stuff - it was just switching spots.  It's really neat that the king ruled so much better afterwards.

The Quarrel of the Cat and Dog:
Very creative story.  I did like this story quite a bit, although it was quite sad.  The person who wrote it must prefer dogs, though, since the author seemed to make the cat out to be more ill-natured than the dog.  It's a cool explanation though for why cats and dogs are not friends nowadays.

From Shepherd-Boy to King:
I like how this story started with how sweet David was and showed how brave he grew up to be.  I'm surprised he didn't fight the lion in this story though to show his might.  Even still, more unicorns?  How strange lol. I think it's also a little weird that the lion was still in pursuit after David was dropped off - I imagine in pursuit of the deer yet David was not sad for it. I like how it ties the story into Psalms although I wish I knew what chapter so I could compare.

The first printed Bible (The Gutenburg Bible)

Source:  Wikipedia

UnTextbook Course Interview

I absolutely love fairy tales, so naturally, the units I turned to were just that - fairy tales.  But even better, there's such a variety in the UnTextbook that I'm sure there will be many new ones.  The Celtic Fairy Tales are in modern language which I appreciate.  That way, I can focus more on the story instead of trying to understand what the other is trying to say.  I read over the first fairy tale and can already tell that this will be a great unit for me to cover.  The next unit I read over was the Canterbury Tales.  Because these are so famous, I thought it was really important for me to cover this unit.  It's a fun unit because the mini-tales within the Canterbury Tales are a competition between the characters to see who could tell the best story.  The next unit I found interesting was the Faerie Queen.  I love romance and comedy, which this unit contains, so I believe that this will be very interesting and the fact that it is written as a poem makes it stand out from some of the other units that I will be reading.  Europa's Fairy Book is the next unit I looked over and I'm especially because although I've heard many of the characters/tales before, there will be twists.  It will be nice being familiar with some of the stories already so that I will be able to recognize the differences.  Brothers Grimm will be interesting as well for the same reason - I've heard many of the stories so catching any differences will be neat!  There's so many more interesting units in the UnTextbook so I may/may not stick with these since there are so many I want to read! What a good problem to have...

The Grimm Brothers

Source:  Wikipedia

Week 1: Storybook Favorites - A Look at Some of the Best

Being in Indian Epics last semester, I am familiar with storybooks but was still very excited to see the storybooks for the Myth-Folklore class.  The storybooks that I chose as some of my favorites were Cupid on Trial, Fairytale Case Files, and The Prince Diaries, although all the storybooks were very well-written.  The storybooks that I chose stood out to me because first of all, the titles were interesting.  Besides that, each storybook was unique, which I will go into in further detail below.
The first of my favorite storybooks that I read was Cupid on Trial.  The design was simple and allowed the text to be easily read.  I knew about Cupid and Venus but knew very little of the other characters so this was a fun way to look at them.  The introduction definitely grabbed my attention and I appreciate how the author provided such great dialogue for the court but also broke away from the courtroom dialogue to provide his own thoughts and added some humor with it as well.  The pictures were very appropriate throughout the storybook and were placed at a great place on the page.  I especially like the ending and how the ruling was resolved - I did not see that ending coming, but it was just perfect.  The only thing I would improve about the storybook is a typo I found, but I understand it's hard to catch everything.
The second of my favorite storybooks was the Fairytale Case Files.  For starters, the introduction was very well written - it started off with questions to grab my attention.  The design of the storybook was also great and I liked the dark background because it really made the words pop.  I know lots of fairytales, but all of these had some sort of twist/was from a different perspective which I absolutely loved! I also thought the bit of humor thrown in was well-timed and not over- or under-done.  This storybook is wonderful and I was sad when I reached the end.
The final storybook of my top three favorites was The Prince Diaries.  I've seen the Princess Diaries (the movie series) so I thought that this would be quite interesting.    I did like the diary entries quite a bit, but I didn't love the disconnect between each entry.  However, the stories themselves and design were great! It's also a very creative topic!

Image from Anderson's Fairy Tales

Source:  Wikipedia

Introduction: Past, Current, and Future

Spartan at 2 months old.

(Personal photo, March 2014)

Hey everyone! My name is Taylor Hamstra and I am a senior Chemical Biosciences major here at OU.  I work as a Resident Advisor in Couch Center which keeps me busy on top of finishing classes to graduate a year early.  Couch Center is arguably the craziest residence hall so the freshmen definitely keep me on my toes.  I'm not sure what you all would like to know about me, but a couple of the more interesting things about me is that 1- I have an insane tolerance for spicy food (I completed the Buffalo Wild Wings challenge and it wasn't spicy lol) and 2- I am technically an ordained minister, so I can marry people.  Some may say it’s not a legit license, but my friend did the same online certification as me and actually married a couple when the pastor became extremely ill the day of the ceremony. Anyways, I love rom-coms (Bride Wars is great as well as 27 Dresses) and I am currently engaged to an absolutely incredible man. My wedding is set for July 26, 2015, and my fiancee also goes to OU and is finishing up his Master's degree in Computer Science (yeah, he's way smarter than me).  With that being said, over Christmas break we did mostly wedding planning stuff.  After graduating, we will be moving to Austin, TX.  I have only been there once so if any of you know of things I should do/try while I live there, please let me know! As for my family, I am the oldest child of a family of 5 - my parents work at a high school teaching and coaching, my sister is a freshman art major at Maryville College, and my brother is a junior in high school.  They're super great and we have a puppy dog at home named Spartan.  She's super sweet and is so funny.  Anyways, that’s about it – can’t wait to get to know you guys through this course and good luck with your other classes!

Storytelling Week 1: For a Son

"BYE, baby bunting,

Daddy's gone a hunting,

To get a little hare's skin

To wrap a baby bunting in."

(traditional nursery rhyme)

Boy hunting with a bow and arrow (similar to the father)

By Doris Ulmann

Source:  Wikipedia

 In a conservative log cabin in late November, a small child was born to a young couple.  The baby boy was happy and delicate but as winter snow enveloped the land, the parents became worried about their small child because he began coughing and seemed more feeble.  The young parents had never had a child before and were concerned.  However, they were far away from the closest town and needed a short-term solution before they made the trek out into the cold in order to seek out a doctor for their son.  Thus, the young father decided that he would trek into the snow-covered hills to hunt in order to provide fur for his son to stay warm.  

               Unfortunately, most of the animals were hibernating in out of reach places and the father felt defeated as he could not find any large game to bring home to his family.  As his strength and stamina gradually waned, he knew he didn't have much time left to get home before dark.  After about half an hour or so of his trek back towards the cabin, he spotted a hare not too far away from where he was standing.  The hare froze in its tracks as it seemed to sniff the ground, unaware of the lurking danger.  Not skipping a beat, the young father whipped out his bow and arrow and ended the rabbit's life in order to extend the life of another- the life of his son.  As he carefully bent down to pick up the slain hare, he paused to think of his small son and sweet wife back at the cabin.  With newly found energy, he raced back to the cabin to find his wife anxiously peering out the door scanning the woods for him.  As she spotted him, a smile grew across her face as her husband had returned safe and sound.  After the young wife crafted a fur blanket to wrap her son in, they made plans to journey to the neighboring town the next morning.

Author's Note:  First off, my story is based off the nursery rhyme "Bye, Baby Bunting" which is included in The Nursery Rhyme Book edited by Andrew Lang in 1897.  When I originally read the rhyme, I thought about a father's love for his son and what great lengths he would go to in order to ensure the health and wellness for his child.  The picture and beaty of love was really inspirational and painted such a beautiful portrait in my mind of a young couple doing everything they can in order to work together to raise a healthy, young baby.  I chose to make the story based in the past where it wasn't as easy for parents to simply drive down the road and see the doctor- the dad sacrificially wandered through the snow in search of warmt for his son and risked the fact that he may not find anything at all!  The mother also was a great help and did her part at home- tending to the baby as needed and welcoming her husband home with open arms as soon as he arrived.