Skywoman
*Adapted from oral tradition, Kay Olan’s Version, and Shenandoah and George
In the beginning, there was Skyworld. At its centre was a great tree. It bore many fruits, and its blossoms glowed. It was called the Tree of Life. The beings of Skyworld were not supposed to disturb the tree. Though one woman who was expecting a baby asked for a drink of tea made from the roots of the Tree of Life. When her husband began to dig at the roots of the tree, they began to cave in, and some say the tree fell down. This was terrible. The woman went to see what had happened. Some say she lost her balance, and fell in the hole made by the tree. Some say she knew she was destined to go, and so she jumped. Some say she was pushed. Nevertheless, she grabbed a bundle of branches from the Tree of Life as she fell. Because she fell through the hole in the sky, many know her as Skywoman.
It took her a long time to fall. Hurtling downward, she saw only dark water below. But in that void, there were many eyes upon her, gazing at the sudden shaft of light from the sky. As she came closer, they could see that the scintillating speck was a woman, arms outstretched, long black hair billowing behind as she spiralled down toward them. Below her flew a flock of water birds. Some say they were geese. Some say they were blue heron. Some say it was a flock of swans. Regardless, the water birds nodded to each other in agreement, and formed a great blanket with their bodies to break her fall. The birds could not hold her much longer, and so they called a council of all animals to decide what to do. A giant turtle offered his back for her to rest upon. And Skywoman stepped from the winged blanket onto the turtle’s shell.
The others understood that she needed land for her home, and discussed how they might serve her need. The deep divers had heard of dirt at the bottom of the water, and all agreed to go find some. Loon, otter, beaver, sturgeon - all dove as far as they could, but the distance was too great. Even the strongest of swimmers surfaced gasping for air. Some did not return at all. Then finally, the little muskrat was left. The weakest diver of them all, he worked his way downward for a very, very long time. Eventually, his little body rose to the surface of the water, and his paw was tightly clenched with a handful of mud. Skywoman spread the mud over the turtle’s back with the palms of her hands. Moved by the extraordinary gifts of the animals, she sang and danced in exaltation. As she danced, the turtle’s shell grew larger, and the seeds and branches from the Tree of Life multiplied. As she danced, wild grasses, flowers, trees and medicines spread throughout the land. As she danced, the whole earth was made. Though not by the work of Skywoman alone, but from the alchemy of the animals’ gifts blended with her deep gratitude. Together they created what we know today as Turtle Island, our Earth, our home.
Painting by Bruce King