Past Semester Reflection

This semester really challenged me in ways I did not expect. This included in both reading and writing. 

I consider myself someone who has read a lot and is rather well-versed in different language styles. However, this class kind of proved me wrong. I was exposed to so many different cultures that I found myself having to adjust to many different types of writing and verses, etc. I thought it was really cool seeing how different cultures told stories and what they valued as important that made it into their stories. Personally, I think I did a good job being open minded to different and new cultures. 

In writing, I was definitely challenged to explore different writing styles. I think this was good for me since I hadn't really been challenged in that way before. I really liked how there was the storytelling randomizer that gave me different ideas on how to write the stories that we were assigned each week. There were so many styles that are creative that I had not thought of before. I think I did a good job using different styles that were a challenge for me rather than just playing it safe and changing a part of the story, etc. My storybook really challenged me since I tried to make the "Immortals Among Us" style with each one. A lot of time, I hadn't even read the stories yet, so it took brainstorming as to the best way to connect the style into the story. 

I bookmarked the web page that lists all of the different storytelling styles because I think it would be a great resource to utilize whenever I am writing. Especially in advertising, it is important to distinguish oneself with creativity so I think the page would really be helpful! 

Overall, I am really glad that I took this class. Laura was such a large knowledge base about the different cultures and how each story fits into each one. She obviously puts so much work into her class and her students, that it really inspired me to put work into the class as well. I think I did a good job taking advantage of all of her knowledge and all of the opportunity I had to read things that I wouldn't have otherwise had the chance to. The class also encourages so much thought that I feel like I really learned a lot about myself, my likes and dislikes, and beliefs through the readings and writings. 

Tech Tip: More on Horizontal Navigation

So, somehow I am still struggling with getting my new stories to show up on the horizontal navigation of my storybook. So, I decided that I would write another tech tip to both serve as a reminder for myself and help those who might be experiencing the same difficulties.

So, after I write my stories, they don't pop up in the navigation, even if I say I want them on their own page. I always try to go into settings under "manage site" and then I accidentally but the story as a sub-page on one of the other stories sites. So, do not click "manage site".

Rather, go to the settings menu, click edit site layout, then hold your cursor over the buttons for the other stories. The entire bar should highlight itself and a little message will pop up that says "edit horizontal navigation". Click anywhere in that highlighted bar, and another window will come up that has the name of all your pages. Click "add page" that's in blue at the bottom of the first box. Click this, and then click the name of the story that you want to add to the navigation bar. Once it is selected, click "okay" and then it should have it's own button in the navigation! 

I don't know why this is so difficult for me to remember, but I also have to re-remind myself every two weeks. I hope this helps anyone else that has also chosen to do a horizontal navigation bar! 

**House For Sale**

A small, cozy cottage deep in the countryside that is perfect for raising your children or enjoying your space from the bustling city. Located just close enough to the main city to be convenient, but far enough a way to feel the seclusion and tranquility that nature can provide. The spacious rooms and living area allow for the house to be full of many people. This would allow for the space to be rented out as extra income, or for you to have great gatherings of friends and family. The large windows in the front allow for a view of the rolling hills and mountains. Farmland is available to your family for either stables or farming.

(The Cabin) 

Property Details

-A four bedroom cottage. Large rooms that are perfect for multiple beds depending on your needs.

-a large outhouse located near the back of the house

-spacious living area and kitchen

-lamps for gas lights

-large lot perfect for stables or farming with a view of the mountains 

-many windows allow for plenty of light 

-about a half an hour from the main city

-closest neighbors about ten minutes on horseback

Features 

-lamps for gas lights throughout the home

-fencing to keep cattle or other animals contained

-many trees to provide shade and greenery to the lot

-acres of grass that is perfect for feeding or for families to enjoy

-large stables already built to accommodate animals of the family and travelers

-insulation to not let wind and other debris through cracks in the walls or window of the cottage

-sturdy roofing to protect against rain and other weather conditions

-built in fire stove to allow for heating and cooking in the house

Disclaimer

This cottage is located where Death tends to appear. Should Death appear in the night, everyone in the cottage shall perish. However, several years ago, a Cossack was visiting. When Death appeared and reached through the window, the Cossack cut off her arm. All of the villagers set out the next morning to find death and see her demise. Once they came to the Ponomar's cottage down the road, the daughter was laying on the stove, missing an arm. Therefore, it could be said that Death has appeared at this current cottage. That next morning, the Death witch was drowned so we can assure that occupants will remain safe and out of danger. 

Author's note: 

I am writing this story based off of The Witch Girl from the Russian Folktales unit. In the story, a Cossack comes to a cottage and asks if there is a place for him to stay. The owner replies, "Come in, if you don't fear Death", which really confuses the Cossack. When he walks inside, there are families in there crying and praying. They are expecting Death to come that night. Should Death visit the cottage, everyone would die. So, they all go to bed except the Cossack, who stays up all night to keep watch. Once Death appears and reaches in through the window, he cuts off her arm. The next morning, the Cossack tells everyone what he has done and they go out in search of Death. They find a girl at the Ponomar's cottage, laying on the stove missing an arm. When the Cossack explains to the man what has happened and shows him the arm, the man demands for his daughter to be drowned. 

I didn't really feel like writing more on this topic, so I decided to write a real estate listing for the cottage. I thought it would be a more fun and creative topic. Since real-estate agents have to disclose events like death that have happened in a house, the story ties in to the Disclaimer at the end. I didn't really change anything of the story, more just put it in a different format. 

Bibliography:

The Witch Girl from Russian Fairy Tales by W.R.S. Ralston (1887). 

Famous Last Words

Since its near the end of the semester, I decided to do a quick Famous Last Words blog to reflect on my week and kind of the semester as a whole. I can't believe that at the end of this week, it will be May and the year will be basically over! It always flies by and I feel like next year will be even worse. 

So, this week I actually got my reading done early! Which was a first for me. Since some of my classes were cancelled due to presentations and others were cancelled for the storms, I had more time on my hands than usual. It feels good to know that I am on track to finish the week on time, especially this close to the end of the semester. I have not done my storytelling yet, but I plan to later this afternoon or tomorrow. 

My other classes are really picking up since it is the end of the semester. I am in one class, advertising media, that demands so much time! My group consistently works on the project, which is great, but we still have so much to do. I can't even think about it or I start getting stressed out. Luckily, the class is really interesting to me and is for my major. It helps the time spent feel worthwhile. 

On top of that, I had another project due on Monday that we have to present on Thursday. Its a group project so finding time to get the entire group together to practice is nearly impossible. We always meet up around 9pm which means were on campus so late! I am ready for that project to be over.

Then, in my Public Speaking class, we have our final speeches this week and next. My speech was supposed to be today but I was not ready. Thank goodness my teacher allows flexibility and I was able to move it to next Thursday. That way, I will have more time to be adequately prepared. I just couldn't get it together this week since I was in Houston all weekend for a wedding.

Regardless of all the stress I feel and that I am a little behind in school now, I really enjoyed the wedding. I went with my boyfriend's family, so I got to know them more. The actual wedding was beautiful and it was obvious that they had spent a lot of money to hold the best event that they could. It was also super interesting because the bride married a guy from France. She had been working in London and met him on the train. His father and grandparents did not speak English, so parts of the wedding and the toasts were in French while the other parts were in English. Also, a ton of his friends came so there were a lot of people there who were from Europe. It was so interesting talking to them and I loved hearing about all of their experiences. All of the countries are so close together in Europe, that it seems like they had been everywhere! 

Personal picture of the wedding reception

Overall, it was a wonderful weekend and a much needed break from all of the assignments that are due at school! 

Reading Diary Week 14, continued: Russian Folktales

The Witch Girl really confused me! Was it the daughter that lived in the cottage? I got confused when she was ill and her arm was cut off after the Cossack cut off the witch's arm. Or was death punishing the daughter? 
I thought it was very brave of the Cossack to cut off the arm of Death. I'm curious if the Russians believe you can defeat and avoid death, since that happened in the story? This is something I would like to research. 

The Russian Princess was also a really weird story! The fact that the Princess could take off her head was really strange. I couldn't tell if the story meant her actual head or like a headpiece. From how it sounded, it sounds like it was her whole head. Then, she was so mad at the priest's son for seeing her and telling everyone what he saw- I guess it was supposed to be a secret? 

The Cossack

I think its interesting how in each story, the family is so quick to betray one of their own. In The Russian Princess, the King decided to drive a stake into her heart so that she would die and stop torturing the priests' son. In The Witch Girl, the father rewarded the Cossack for drowning the witch, which evidently was his daughter. I feel like in English and American stories, the families always protect their own. I would like to research family dynamics in Russia to see if these stories are incorporating an accurate portrayal of how families relate to each other. 

The Two Friends made me very sad! SinceI would be the bride, I know I would be very disappointed if my fiancee disappeared into a grave with his old, dead friend and did not make it to my wedding. Why did the friend ask the man to drink with him? Did he not know that a hundred years would pass with each drink? What if I suddenly walked out of my house or something and three hundred years had passed? 

This story reminded me of my storytelling since a supernatural being defies the laws of death and has the power to communicate with those still living. This is basically what happens in my storytelling. The only difference is that the spirits that I write about are often helpful to those still living. Maybe for my last story, I could write about one that makes life more complicated for those living? I had never thought about doing this; it is something to consider.

Note for storytelling: 
Moujik= Russian peasant 
Cossack= member of the Southern part of Russia. They are known for their horsemanship and military skills. 

Bibliography: Russian Fairy Tales: A Choice Collection of Muscovite Folklore by W.R.S. Ralston (1887). 

Reading Diary, Week 14: Russian Folktales

This week, I read the Russian Folktales unit. I thought it was very interesting because it dealt with spirits and other supernatural figures. I think I got some good ideas from this unit since my storybook follows the theme of "immortals among us" where characters that have either passed or who have the power of time travel, etc. communicate with other characters in the story. 

At first, I thought The Dead Mother was sweet because the mother was still taking care of her baby, even though she had passed away. I thought it was a good way to illustrate the strong love between a mother and child. However, towards the end it got kind of eerie. It sounded really freaky when the other characters are sleeping in the room and they see the dead mother come in. Also, it got super weird when the baby was dead at the end. It made me kind of sad honestly.

The Treasure was very intriguing to me because I am wondering what values the Russians had that caused this story to be written. I am curious what the motivation of the author was. Maybe to talk about how God punishes the greediness of others? I felt bad for the old man that the people were not interested in helping him until he had money. Basically, it painted the Russians as very greedy and selfish people to me. Also, the pope was so corrupt! He is supposed to be the spiritual leader, but he definitely did not seem to be living according to the Bible. One thing I would like to look up is the values that the Russian people have because it may give some insight to the stories. Also, I am curious what beliefs the Russians typically have. If it is Christianity or Catholicism, then the Pope does not uphold the values that the Bible teaches. However, if it is a different belief system, then maybe he does. 

(The pot of gold that the old man found)

Friday was pretty confusing to me since I did not understand the importance of Mother Friday. I tried to look it up but didn't really find anything online. The story reminded me though of how the Sabbath is to be kept holy and a day of rest in Christian faith. I'm wondering if Friday is seen as a day of rest out of respect for the saints? I wish there was more information on this online! I am very intrigued by why a woman would get punished for spinning flax on Friday.

The Leshy was a very dark story! Basically it seems like the demon kidnapped the girl and held her hostage for 3 years. During that time, she seemed to have forgotten her life with her family. It reminded me of the hostage stories you hear of happening during real life where the person starts thinking that their captive life is normal and I guess the trauma causes them to totally suppress memories of their life before. It really seemed eerie to me and I'm once again curious why the Russians created a folktale about this. Was it supposed to be a warning to girls to not walk alone in the forest? This aspect also reminded me of The Little Red Riding Hood. 

Overall, I have so far really enjoyed the Russian Folktales. I feel a little weird about how much I liked reading them since a lot of them were about death or other dark topics. It was a nice change of pace though from some of the stories of the past. Also, they were very easy to understand which allowed me to focus on reading the stories rather than figuring out the language, etc. I am excited to read the second half later today! 

Bibliography: Russian Fairy Tales: A Collection of Muscovite Folklore by W.R.S. Ralston  (1887). 

Reading Diary, Week 13

I really enjoyed reading this week's unit! I chose to read the Fables of La Fontaine this week for my stories. My favorite part of the reading was how light the stories sounded. I think this was because each sentence was so short that it gave it kind of a jumpy, jovial feeling. In my writing, I would like to try and copy this sentence structure. I have not ever changed the structure of my sentences, so this would be a good exercise for me. 

I also really liked how each of the the stanzas rhymed. I think it makes the writing more interesting and more exciting to read. I've said this before, but I want to try and rhyme in my storytelling. I think its a really cool challenge and something that would be really fun.

(The Tortoise and the Hare)

The third thing I liked about the unit was all of the animal stories. I love animals so I tend to gravitate towards stories about them.

My favorite stories from the first part of the unit are the stories by Larned. I was first intrigued by the titles: "Foolish Animals" and "More Foolish Animals". Then, I really liked the content since the stories were very light hearted. I think reading should be a sweet distraction from life and these stories struck me as this way. 

Growth Mindset Challenge- Curiosity: Quest for New Ideas and Information

This week I also decided to do a Growth Mindset Challenge. For the challenge, I read Jackie Gernstein's blog post about adding curiosity to schools. I completely agree with everything that she says because I do think curiosity should be encouraged and cultivated while one is in school. There are so many times that I feel like I don't have time to be curious because I'm trying to get assigned homework and readings complete. By the time all of this is done, my mind feels worn out and I would much rather just watch mindless TV rather than think about anything new.

Growth Mindset Memes blog.
Original image made on Cheezburger

I also think it would help encourage people to learn. Being naturally curious means that you want to know more. This would help so much during one's education. Especially in college where a lot of the gen-ed classes do not pertain to your major, but rather are trying to make you a well-rounded student. For example, I had to take a non-western dance class last year to satisfy my non-western culture class. Had I been curious about this topic, I would have wanted to know more and would have enjoyed the class more. 

I also think curiosity should extend throughout one's life. Not just during their schooling. I don't think a person is ever done learning. However, I could see how when I get older, there may be a time where I am not learning many new things since I am either working or doing my normal routine. If one is not curious, they will not pursue knowledge and will not continue to learn. I want to be curious so that I can learn forever and grow as a person. 

Learning by HEART- The Amazing Effects of Gratitude

This week, I decided to do a learning by HEART challenge. The one I did focused on happiness and it was a video that talked about the effects of gratitude. Basically, it said being grateful leads to one being happier. 

I completely agree with this video. I think being grateful definitely gives a person a healthy perspective and helps them focus on the positive in their life rather than the negative. Let's say that I chose to write down everything that happened to me during the day that was good. This would definitely help me focus on the good things that are happening around me and would help me completely shift my mindset.

I also thought it was interesting that scientists have only been studying the effects of gratitude for about 30 years. Thinking about how long some topics have been researched, this is no time at all! I am curious what else comes to light as researchers get more time to dig into the effects of gratitude.

I think the video was definitely a good reminder to me to focus on the good rather than the bad. When I get down or am tired, I can get fixated on everything that is going wrong that day which only makes my mood worse. I think writing down all of the blessings in my life would definitely be helpful since I could refer to it when I started feeling pessimistic. 

Reading Diary Week 12, continued: Robin Hood

Today, while reading, I couldn't help but notice how much detail is put into each story in the Robin Hood unit. For example, in Little John a Begging, the details about the number of beggars, whether the were blind or not, the specific forrest, where people were from, etc. I thought it was really interesting that the author decided to include so much information. I wonder how much of it was accurate to the times and how the author decided which places to include, etc? There had to be some research or trends that dictated what was included.

Including more detail is something that I am trying to do in my own storytelling. When writing my next story, I would like to reference some of the stories in the Robin Hood unit for examples on how to include all of the facts without making the story feel choppy and interrupted.

I really enjoyed Robin Hood and Maid Marian. I am a sucker for love stories, so I really liked the story of Robin Hood finding love with Marian. From the story, it sounded like they lived happily together for the rest of their lives, and that really made me happy. Some of these stories can be so dramatic, I was half expecting something terrible to happen to her. I guess the Robin Hood unit hasn't had many plot twists like that though. I have not yet written a love story for this class yet. That is something I would like to do before the semester is though. 

Robin Hood and Marian
(Douglas Fairbanks as Robin Hood)

Robin Hood's Death made me really sad! From my understanding, Robin's cousin basically stabbed the vein in his arm until he bled out. I was shocked to read that this was Robin's end. It's one of those things where when you read it in the story, the language is different so it doesn't sound that terrible. But, if you stop to think about it in real life, its truly horrific! My guess is that Walt Disney did not include this in the ending of his story, but I could be wrong. If I'm remembering right, I have not yet killed anyone off in my stories. Maybe it would be a cool exercise if I ended one of my stories with the death of a character.

All in all, I think the Robin Hood unit was not my favorite. Actually, the British/Celtic weeks did not really appeal to me in general. This is interesting since I would have thought I liked the British ones since I had assumed they would be similar to America's since the values and traditions might overlap more? I was proven wrong! 

Reading Diary, Week 12: Robin Hood Unit

I actually learned something before even reading in the Robin Hood unit. I did not know that there were multiple Robin Hood stories. I guess, due to the representation that Disney provides, I just assumed since there was only one story since there is only one movie. I don't know if I've ever seen the movie, but I am wondering if the movie tells the story of his whole life? Like all of the different tales combined or if it focuses and elaborates on one? Or maybe its completely different? I would like to research this and see.

The next thing I noticed about the unit was that the language was fairly different which made it a little difficult to read. I had a hard time understanding what was happening and actually had to re-read many sentences. This got annoying to me since I am not used to a language barrier. However, in my own storytelling, it might be cool to research a different way of speaking and incorporate it in. I have never tried to write using the ways of speaking from a different time, so this could be a real growing exercise for me. Since the stories are so long, this meant that it took me a long time to get through even one story.

Actual photo of me trying to read these stories 

(Pixabay)

I'm still not completely clear on what all happened in the story of Robin Hood and Little John. The language is so different! It is surprisingly difficult for me to read! Basically, I think it was explaining the story of Robin Hood and Little John's meeting and a fight that they had. One thing I really liked about the story was how it rhymed. I have never tried rhyming in my stories, so I think it would be a challenging yet fun exercise to try.

In The Shepherd, I noticed a lot of punctuation. I don't know if this is because the language of the time is more abbreviated from the formal version or why this would be, but there are so many apostrophes before words and other things like that. I also noticed they employed a lot of commas and semicolons. At the end of each line and the beginning of many, there is some kind of punctuation which makes the story look really busy to me. 

Robin Hood's horn seems like an integral part to Robin Hood's character. It seems to appear in each story. I would like to research whether a horn is a prop for a reason. Does it symbolize anything, or was it just an artistic choice of the author to include it?


Bibliography: The English and Scottish Popular Ballads by Francis James Child. 

Week 11 Storytelling: Dear Alena

February 22, 1892

Dear Alena,

You will never guess what just happened to me earlier tonight. This lady just knocked on my door and when I opened it, she just let herself in. She introduced herself as "the witch with one horn" and she actually did have only one horn! I was mesmerized by her forehead and couldn't look away! It was all I could do to step aside as she burst forth through the door. 

She then sat down and started talking about other women and, lo and behold, there was another knock on the door. Then, the weirdest thing happened. It was like I was in a trance and, before I could even think about it, I had stood up and walked to the door to let yet another woman came into my house! This time, she introduced herself as "the Witch of two horns" and, as you would guess, she actually did have two horns. 

This continued for the longest time. Each time there was a knock, I immediately stood up and would open the door. It's like I couldn't control my own body...

This madness finally stopped when there were twelve women in my house! Each had one horn than the one before. So, the last woman had twelve horns. It was the most bizarre thing I have ever experienced. 

I finally decided to go to bed because they were so busy carding wool. I ended up having to just leave them in my living room since they were making no motions to leave! Hopefully they will be gone in the morning. 

Thoughtfully yours,

Keelin

The Horned Women
Illustration by: John D. Batten (1892)

February 24, 1892

Dear Alena,

The women are still here! I thought they would be leaving but they won't! Last night, I really thought I was going to die. They are so menacing with their many horns. But, besides all of that, last night got even weirder. I really cannot explain what has been happening, but I will do my best. You probably will not believe me, but I promise I am telling the truth.

So, the witches decided last night that they wanted cake. So, I had to go to the well to fetch water to make it. When I got to the well, I realized the sieve had a hole in it, so I couldn't bring back any water. Of course, I was completely freaking out because if I didn't bring back the water for the cake, the witches were going to be extremely angry. Then, all of a sudden I heard this mysterious voice from behind me, telling me what to do to fix the sieve. Then, they went into great detail as to how to rid my house of the witches. It knew exactly what to do and all of a sudden I felt very strong and compelling. Like I had been possessed by this other being. 

When I returned home, I followed the exact steps that the voice told me. When the witches returned to the house, they could not get in and they were forced to flee! I am so relieved! I have been terrified for so many days! 

I cannot wait to visit soon to go into more details about these strange events! Please come visit soon.

Best,

Keelin 

Author's Note: I wrote my story based of off The Horned Women from the Celtic Fairy Tales unit. My story follows pretty closely until the end. The original story goes into many more details about the spirit of the well and how the witches were denied entrance from the house. I also made the story more personal by using the first person. In the original story, the narrator understands what is happening. For example, when the spirit of the well possesses the woman, they know what is going on. However, in my version, the protagonist is unclear as to what is happening to themselves. Since the story was so bizarre to me, I thought I would express that through my storytelling. 

Bibliography:  The Horned Women from Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs (1892). 

Reading Diary Week 11: Celtic Fairy Tales

The Field of Boliauns was such a weird story to me. First of all, the diction was very different. I had to look several words up to try and figure out what they meant. For example, I didn't know what "motty" or "deeshy daushy" meant because they're just not in our vocabulary. I also had never really thought about where the stories about leprechauns come from, but I guess its from the Celtic stories. I thought it was interesting that this one included one in it. I'm not really sure what the purpose of the story was. But I guess not every story needs a purpose...

The Horned Women is also super weird! Why are all these stories so different?! It's crazy to me how each culture has such different traditions, especially when it comes to more creative things like storytelling. Why were there twelve horned women in a lady's house? How could this story even come to be? It did kind of remind me of the movie Ella Enchanted where the Ella has to do anything that anyone says. I just am really curious how this story even had meaning to the people and what kind of events were happening that would inspire it. This is something I would like to research if I had time.

The Sprightly Tailor made me laugh because it is just so absurd to me. Why is there a monster in the church? I like the tailors perseverance but why was all of this happening? The ending made me laugh since he finished the trews but the stitches were longer in the end than the beginning. I don't know why this struck me as funny, but it did. I also had to look up what trews were. Turns out that they are just a Scottish word for pants. At least that is what Wikipedia says. 

Trews
Photo by James F. Perry

All in all, the Celtic culture seems really strange to me. I don't know why they write about what they do or any of the words. I guess it's good to have exposure to different things and I'm happy I read the stories. I guess I just wish I understood the meaning more. I think researching Celtic culture may help with this. 

Bibliography:

Celtic Fairytales by Joseph Jacobs (1892) 

Storytelling Week 10: The Surprise

A blue heron and a fox both lived near a great lake. Each of the animals felt great frustration due to the fact that they lived such separate lives. The fox would hunt all of the smaller animals that the blue heron was friends with. In turn, the blue heron would eat all of the small bugs that fed the fox's prey. This meant that the fox had to hunt much harder for food that was plump enough around the lake. After much fighting, the two decided to strike up a deal. They would race to the end of the lake and whoever won could keep the lake until the end of time.

The fox was sure that he would win, since all he had to do was sprint in a straight line. The blue heron was sure he would win since he had the ability to fly. 

It was early morning when the two set off. The fox started at a swift pace, running along the bank at a record breaking speed. The heron did the same, soaring through the sky across the middle of the lake. Now, each of them learned their lesson. About halfway to the end, they each had to stop and recover for they were so exhausted that they could not continue. The fox curled up in the tall grass against a small shrub for the night. The blue heron decided to fly closer to shore and land in order to preserve his strength for the next day.

The Hummingbird by Charles Sharp

The sunrise woke each of then up and each started off. They did go a bit of a slower pace than the other days, though. Several hours later, the edge of the lake was near and each pushed to beat the other. The blue heron reached the land first, and decided to gloat to the fox about his victory. Just as he was about to say something, though, he heard the hummingbird. 

"Excuse me, I was here first and this is now my land," the hummingbird argued. Now, the fox and the blue heron were not pleased by the hummingbird's statement and decided to argue back with him. However, it was then that the Great Spirit spoke and confirmed that the hummingbird was the true winner for he controls the Earth, not the fox or the blue heron. 

Each stared at each other in disbelief. They had been tricked! Dejectedly, they went home and gathered their things to move elsewhere and honor the Great Spirits wishes that the hummingbird be the true owner of the lake. Even today, that is why the hummingbirds build their nests around water while also enjoying the sweet nectar of the beautiful flowers surrounding the lake. 

Author's Note:

I changed several parts of this story while I was writing. The first was that a fox was not in the original. Rather, the hummingbird and the blue heron owned the lake and were racing and the winner was deemed the true owner. I decided to add in the fox because I thought it added an element of deceit and surprise since I wanted the hummingbird to have it all. I also changed the ending of the story. In the original, the hummingbird lost the race which meant he could not drink from the lake ever again. I decided to change this because I think hummingbirds are so beautiful and I wanted it to have the victory. 

Bibliography:

Why Hummingbirds Drink Only Dew from When the Storm God Rides: Tejas and Other Indian Legends.When the Storm God Rides was retold by Florence Stratton in 1936. 

Reading Diary, Week 10 continued: Tejas Legends

Why Hummingbirds Only Drink Dew reminded me of several of the stories I read yesterday. Each of the Tejas legend stories seem to include so many parts of their culture. This one included gambling, that the Great Spirit seems to be their God, and different animals that the Tejas people seem to cherish. I also learned that hummingbirds must not drinks water and must not fly at night from reading this story. This is two facts that I did not already know about them.  There must have been many hummingbirds around for them to write about them so much. Lucky them! They are very pretty birds.

The Maiden Who Loved a Star was really sweet to me. It reminded me of Romeo and Juliet or some other forbidden love story. I did feel bad for the maiden, though, when she was turned into a tree. I thought she was going to be turned into a cool animal that could fly or something, but no. Once again, I was impressed by the creativity of the Tejas legends. When I first started reading the story, I would never know that it was going to be an explanation for how purple sage appeared in the desert.

How I imagined the star falling to the maiden
Photo by: Kenneth Lu

How Sickness Entered the World made me kind of sad. In reality, it kind of showed the downfall of human's existence. It also seemed to mirror the story of Adam and Eve and how they sinned and brought sickness and all things negative into the world. Rather than eating a fruit, the two Indians killed the messenger snake. Also, both stories included snakes. I wonder if this is because snakes are seen as deceitful? 

When the Rainbow Was Torn had a lot of personification. In my storytelling, I think it would be cool to change an inanimate object into something with actions and characteristics, like the legends did for the rainbow. I thought it was interesting how all of the bands except the yellow, red and orange got away. I understand that they chose these to stay because that's what color the flowers were. But, I also wonder why they chose the color source to be the rainbow? Maybe because it was one of the only bright things around in nature? 

These stories have intrigued me more than most of the folklore stories have. Like I have said before, the creativity and the almost randomness of how the different things in nature come to be makes me wonder about how the Tejas Indians thought. I wish I could travel back into time and be there when they told these stories in person. They seem so mystical and magical. 

Bibliography: 
When the Storm God Rides: Tejas and Other Indian Legends retold by Florence Stratton. 

Reading Diary, Week 10: Tejas Legends

How the North Wind Lost his Hair was a cool story because it explained two different things. The first was why the South is so much warmer than the North. I thought it was an interesting twist to think that one of the winds had beaten out the other. It also explained the Spanish moss in the trees. I wonder why they chose to combine the two stories? I want to research more about how the wind and the moss would be connected where it would make sense in their minds to combine the two. 

It sounds like to me that the Indians found drugs in the story When the Woodpecker Pecks. The fact that they ate buttons that gave them visions, caused them to forget about their children and work, and fall asleep definitely sounds like the effect of some kind of hallucinogen. Its curious to me that this would make it into their folk stories and be part of an explanation for something in nature, like a woodpecker. It makes me wonder whether drugs were a large part of Indian culture?

The Tejas legends seem to include a lot more creativity than some of the other legends. The stories are much more imaginative than some of the other one's I've read. They also seem to explain more than one thing. For example, in The Cloud That Was Lost, I first thought it was explaining fog since the cloud was down near the Earth. Then, it turns out it was explaining how the phlox got their color. 

Wild Flox
Photo by: Tim Ross 

I also like how the Tejas legends explain so much in nature. It was difficult for me to understand the purpose behind some of the other folklore stories we've read. I like how with the Tejas legends, it is very obvious what they're explaining. Yet, they do it in a very creative way. In my storytelling, I want to strive to be more creative. Truth be told, I could put more thought into some of my writing. I want to take the time to think up good ideas so that I can write more imagery and have more of a creative spin on my writing. This would not only strengthen my skill but also make my stories more interesting to read.

Bibliography:
When the Storm God Rides: Tejas and Other Indian Legends retold by Florence Stratton.

Reading Diary Week 9, continued: Myths and Legends of Alaska

Today, I finished the Myths and Legends of Alaska. 

The First Woman was really weird story to me. I get the point- that women in the north are good with their hands and women in the south are good dancers. But why did the woman have to be ripped apart?? It seemed really harsh and gruesome and I wish that wasn't how the tale went. 

The Land of the Dead was especially intriguing to me. I thought it was interesting how their storytelling included how dogs felt when they were beaten. It really seemed to teach lessons of empathy and understanding that must have been valued in their culture. I am curious why the two wrongs they chose to point out were chewing on the grass and beating the dogs, rather than acts against each other, for example. I would like to research more to see if I could understand why these two issues were brought up in the story. I also liked their emphasis on the festival of the dead. It must have been a very important part of their culture since they felt a need to explain it's existence. 

Illustration of the Land of the Dead from Judson's book

The Cradle Song was interesting because it was so relatable. I think everyone learns lullabies as they grow up, and this was my first time to read one from another culture. I think its cool that, even though Alaska is part of the United States, they still have their own culture and traditions that are completely separate. I'm learning that this includes creation stories, values, and so much more. 

The Discontented Grass Plain seemed really weird to me because, in the end, the grass had become a wolf. I couldn't tell if the story was trying to encourage one to find contentment in their life, or if it was explaining why the wolves are separate from each other. If it was to explain the wolves, I'm not sure why they did it in such an indirect way. In my own storytelling, I would like to be direct where the reader doesn't have to wonder my point. Confusion is something I've run into a lot while reading this unit. I guess because I am not as familiar with the Alaskan culture and it's history? 

Bibliography: Myths and Legends of Alaska, edited by Katharine Berry Judson

Reading Diary: Myths and Legends of Alaska

For Week 9, I chose to read the Myths and Legends of Alaska, edited by Katharine Barry Judson. I thought this would be interesting since I am not familiar with Inuit traditions.

The story The Raven Myth: Raven's Creation really enthralled me because I am so fascinated with other creation stories. I thought it was interesting that the story focused on the creation of animals like reindeer, caribou, and mountain sheep that were to be prevalent in the land. This made sense since these animals are so prevalent in colder climates like Alaska. I also thought it was interesting that they chose a raven to be creator of all things. I wonder why this was? 

The Raven

The Flood was extremely interesting to me since The Bible talks of a massive flood as well. I believe that the flood actually happened because I believe that The Bible is true, but it does surprise and please me that there is more evidence of this flood through other folklore traditions.

I also think it is interesting that all of the birds can push up their beaks to become human beings. I'm wondering where this came from where it is so perpetuated in their folklore. 

Raven's Marriage surprised me because the story was more about his struggle to fly with the geese than his marriage. I'm not really sure what the folktale was about. This story struck me as one about perseverance and not wasting all of your energy at the beginning of your journey- much like the storyline of The Tortoise and the Hare. If Raven had not sped ahead of the geese, would he have been able to complete the journey with more ease? Or, was it more of a matter of not having had to make such a long journey before? In my own storytelling, I want the title and the content to align so that it is clear to the reader what the story is about. 

I think the Raven got what he deserved in Raven and the Seals. I love seals so it made me really sad to hear of Raven killing and eating so many of them! I hope that when the Stump sat over the hole, it also saved the seals' lives. Also, I think Raven deserved it since he was boasting about what he had, trying to make Stump jealous. Any time you provoke someone, I think you deserve any backlash that you receive.

I thought it was really cool how the Alaskan people explained the long spans with and without light in The Bringing of the Light by Raven. A man piling up snow seems like such a trivial reason for there being no light, so I think its funny that it was a big enough part of their lives to include it in the story. I also am a little confused on Raven after reading the story. Can anyone become Raven? What is the importance of a rave? These are things I would like to research in the future to help me better understand their stories. 

Tech Tip Site Navigation

So somehow earlier today, while updating my storybook. I managed to make my new story a subpage of my Introduction and to completely delete my navigation bar. Needless to say, I was freaking out because I could not figure out how it just happened. Luckily, I figured it out by following the GoogleSites: Adjusting the Navigation Panel blog to help me figure it out!

I decided for my webpage that a horizontal navigation would look best since a lot of my titles are really short. It works really well for these since the whole title can fix in the box. Also, I think it helps focus the viewer on the text since it takes up the whole page, rather than leaving space on the side for the navigation panel. It also easily lays out how many pages they are and makes it super easy to navigate to each. All you have to do is refer back to the top, just like you would when searching on Safari or Google Chrome. 

Once I got the Navigation Pane back by going to More-->Edit Site Layout-->Horizontal Navigation. I then, had to figure out how to get the first story out of the Introduction page. I went to More-->Manage Sites--> Pages (from the left hand tool bar). From there, I could drag the Cinderella page to underneath the The Magic of Reading page. This popped it back out to being a page of it's own!

I hope this could help anyone who's struggling with the same issues I did! To view my Storybook site, click here.

Reading Plan- Weeks 9 and 10

For week 9, I want to read the stories of the Mississippi Valley/Great Lakes unit. I chose this unit because I do not have any experience with the Biloxi. I want to learn more about the values they incorporate into their stories and the information they deem valuable. As I've mentioned before, I like reading different cultures ideas on creation and how things came to be, and this unit seems to be centered around this. In addition, I like the idea of trickster rabbit and would like to read more about this. Lastly, to be honest, I like how many of the stories in the unit are pretty short. I have a really hard time maintaining attention and focus for long, multipage stories. 

For week 10, I want to read the stories from the Inuit people. I think their stories will be fascinating because their setting will be in the polar world and it contains levels of supernatural beings like ghosts. I'm really excited to read more of this unit since I really enjoyed the first story, The Coming of Men, A Long, Long While Ago. 

Visit Greenland, Flickr

Blog Ideas

There were several blogs that I enjoyed looking at, however there were three that really caught my eye. 

Two of them were sort of for the same reasons. I thought Adrienne's blog Mythology and Folklore was cool because she used color schemes I hadn't seen before. She really inspired me to play with the background and text box to find a look that really captured my personality. I also really liked the images that she used. I thought they were well thought out and added to her interpretations of the stories. From what I read, Adrienne and I could probably be very good friends because we have the same humor and like the song Lush Life.

The second blog I enjoyed was Cassie's blog. I mentioned this in my comment to her, but for some reason her color scheme reminded me of strawberry ice cream. I also liked the cream, off-white color she used for the text box. It added color without it being overwhelming or busy. 

Lastly, I really liked the color scheme of Jasmine's blog. I really enjoy the color combination of the teal, black and white, and pink. She did a good job of adding in color without it seeming overwhelming. I also enjoyed how she linked her Pinterest account to her blog. It added an element that I did not see on many others and really intrigued me! I wanted to get to know more about her and had the possibility to through clicking around on her Pinterest boards. 

Mid-Semester Time Management

At the beginning of the semester, I decided to lay out my schedule for this class with each week starting on Sunday. I would aim to get the reading done for the upcoming week on Sunday, the storytelling done on Tuesday, and the weekend assignments started on Thursday and done by Saturday. As much as I want this schedule to work, it just doesn't with me. That is why I have decided to change my week start date to Monday. Between Monday and Tuesday, I will get the reading done. By Thursday, I will have the storytelling done as well as start the weekend assignments. Then, Sunday I will finish up the week's assignments to have them all in on time. 

Working ahead, in my mind, would be to have the storytelling done on Tuesday to allow the rest of the week to prepare for the project and my weekend assignments. I think this is usually a feasible task based off of my experience. However, I don't want to make it an absolute deadline for myself. 

A checklist to use to highlight completed assignments

Ideally, I would also start the weekend assignments earlier than Sunday so that my Sundays are not as stressful. However, with the way my work and class schedule is this semester, usually I do not have time to do so.

Some strategies that I want to use for the rest of the semester is setting aside specific time that I will use for class, but making it shorter time. For example, rather than saying "I'm going to work on assignments all Tuesday afternoon", I want to set aside a specific hour or two that I will really focus on getting work done. I think having this set time and then giving myself a break will allow me to stay more focused and motivated than having just the vague idea of "the whole afternoon to work". Also, I will be motivated to get my assignments done if I know that I can actually relax and watch an episode of Netflix in an hour rather than putting off the work and taking a break early, but being stressed the entire time. 

An idea for how to break up my study time- The Pomodoro Technique

Another time management skill that I want to use is to write my assignments down in my planner more. I used to be very good about this. However, recently I have relied more on my memory which has resulted in my rushing to finish some things due to the fact that I forgot the deadline. This results in a lot of stress for me since I don't like feeling like I am turning in sub-par work. Writing down when assignments are due and writing down a plan for getting them done will help me stay on track. 

Reading Diary Week 7, continued:

Continued reading from Filipino Popular Tales by Dean S. Fansler . 

Why Mosquitos Hum and Try to get into the Holes of our Ears really confused me. I understand that the story was an attempt to explain why mosquitos buzz around peoples ears. However, the story did not make it very clear which type of being each character was, which made it hard to follow. I was also confused how the rain, carrying the house, and the fire all tied in. It just seemed very random and hard to follow. In my storytelling, I want to make it very clear what is happening and who each character is so that people do not get frustrated and confused. 

The Hummingbird and the Carabao made me laugh. I liked how the relationship between the two animals was very relatable. Oftentimes, my friends will also joke with each other that they can do one thing better than the other and a competition ensues. I also liked the large amounts of diction in the story. It allowed the relationship to develop between the two characters and showed more emotion than a 3rd party re-telling of the event. In my storytelling, I would also like to incorporate more diction so that the personalities of the characters and their thoughts can be more developed.

Why the Sun Shines more Brightly than the Moon was a very interesting story to me because, as I've mentioned before, I like when folktales attempt to explain natural phenomenons. In this case, I thought it was interesting that the girls had knowledge of what their god was doing and could have enough contact with them to steal. This is such a contrast to the Christian beliefs that I grew up with where God is this mystical being who we cannot see or visit until after death. I'm curious if the Filipinos believe that they're god is living among them? This is something I would like to look more into. 

The sun versus the moon
Photo by: Remus Withe 

The Story of our Fingers definitely makes me look at my hand a little differently! It always makes me laugh the stories that humans can come up with when left to their imagination. I'm curious why the tale came about that a thumb was trying to steal? Then that would cause people to look negatively upon one part of their body. I think this story does a good job embodying the culture of the Filipino people. It was apparent after reading this that they do not approve of stealing and that, should one steal, it is possible that they would be shunned from society. I'm curious whether this is still a value that exists in their culture today?

I really enjoyed Why the Ocean is Salty because it makes sense to me. Something I have learned through this unit is that the Filipino people are very creative. They like to employ magic/mythical beings into their stories as well as give natural objects, such as the ocean, a personality. I really enjoyed reading this unit because it was a previously unknown culture to me and my first experience with it.