Week 11, Extra Reading Diary,Welsh Fairy Book (Thomas)

Welsh Fairy Book (Thomas)

The Stray Cow

Cows in a lake found on www.colourbox.com

...the neighbourhood of the lake was haunted by a band of elfin ladies.
I had no idea that elves had animals, very interesting!
 but no one was favoured with more than a passing glimpse till an old farmer ... had the good luck to catch one of the Gwartheg y Llyn, or kine of the lake, which had fallen in love with the cattle of his herd.
Well, I do believe we have found a lady of the lake, or a river goddess....
Never was there such a cow, never such calves, never such milk and butter and cheese...

Because the food is divine! I don't think the cow is actually a normal cow, but a deity, a sacred deity who may have shapeshifted? Hathor?

...a piercing cry awakened the echoes of the hills and made the welkin ring. The butcher's arm was paralysed ...

Very interesting magic here, with use of sound. Clearly this is one of the maidens of the lake if not the lady herself.

No sooner were these words uttered than the elfin cow and all her progeny to the third and fourth generation were in full flight towards the lake....

interesting spell

"Come thou, Einion's Yellow One,
Stray-horns, the Particoloured Lake Cow.
And the hornless Dodyn,
Arise, come home."

I have no idea what any of this means, I will have to do some looking....

he saw the elfin dame, with the cows and their calves formed in a circle round her, leisurely descending mid-lake. They disappeared...
are you kidding me? a herd of cows, just disappearing into the lake? I am going to have to say I think that the lake is a stargate portal. like lake Nemi that is sacred to the triple goddess Diana of the hunt, Diana's mirror.

Week 11, Reading Diary, Reading Diary B, King Arthur

Myth-Folklore Unit: King Arthur

HOW SIR GALAHAD FOUND THE GRAAL

Therewith he kneeled down before the table and made his prayers, and while he was praying, his soul suddenly left the body and was carried by angels up into heaven, which the two Knights right well beheld. Also they saw come from heaven a hand, but no body behind it, and it came unto the Vessel, and took it and the spear, and bare them back to heaven. And since then no man has dared to say that he has seen the Holy Graal.

This is the coolest thing that I found in this half of the unit. I love that a hand just pops out of nowhere and takes the Vessel and the spear and disappears. I feel some fairy magic about to happen! 

www.tarotteachings.com

Week 11, Reading Diary, Reading Diary A, King Arthur

Myth-Folklore Unit: King Arthur

THE PASSING OF MERLIN

• Sir Pellinore, brought a damsel of the lake to Arthur's Court, and when Merlin saw her he fell in love with her, so that he desired to be always in her company....whom some call Nimue and others Vivien, and wherever she went, Merlin went also.

Okay cool, now we meet the immortal Lady of the Lake, the owner of Excalibur. She has the sword as it was returned to her upon the death of King Arthur. Nathan has been sent to retrieve the sword by his immortal soon to be wife Melusina. Nimue is Melusina's maternal grandmother. Melusina and her sister Melior have been magically trapped on a piece of property owned by the crusader family of Raymond of Toulouse, and Nathan is on an errand to find the sword in order to free Melusina. 

• The damsel laughed in secret at Merlin but made use of him to tell her all she would know, and the wizard had no strength to say her nay, though he knew what would come of it. For he told King Arthur that before long he should be put into the earth alive, for all his cunning. 

Like Nathan, the seeker, the pure of heart, even the powerful Merlin is defenseless against the guiles of the women of the line of the lady of the lake. The river goddess woman are unstoppable when they decide on doing something.

• put forth all her Powers and told Merlin how she longed to see the wonders beneath the stone, and, in spite of all his wisdom, Merlin listened to her and crept under the rock to bring forth the strange things that lay there. And when he was under the stone, she used the magic he had taught her, and the rock rolled over him and buried him alive, as he had told King Arthur....— now that she knew all the magic he could teach her.

I wonder if this is how Nathan and Melusina will wind up, after he passes the initiation and retrieves what Melusina is after. What exactly is it that she is after? Why do we need Excalibur? and what about the other swords, Joyeuse, and Cortana?

Week 2, Storytelling, The Fall of Atlantis, Portfolio,

http://www.crystalinks.com/atlantis.html

The Fall of Atlantis

Before the time of the Great Flood there was an epoch of time called Atlantis, like how there was a medieval period of time. The days of the Atlantean period were full of advanced technology and astounding architectural accomplishments. A time when the gods and angels walked the earth with man. Atlantis also became full of corruption and greed. The law of the land went from a state of balance of peace and abundance for all to a state of imbalance and the rule of a few over many. People during the declining times of Atlantis became slaves to the elite and were forced to work in unsafe conditions, worship false gods, be separated from their loved ones and go without food or pay. The people became unsettled and started a rebellion to try to bring them back to a state of balance.

The huge towers and monuments that had been built to honor the gods, like the great Tower of Babel, came under attack because the people were losing faith in the powers of the gods to protect them from the tyranny of the elite ruling class of Atlantis. One of the tallest towers became a tool to shoot weapons into the sky. The rebelling Atlanteans were aiming to reach the heavens, the abodes of the gods with their death rays and atomic weapons that their anger and hatred had built. To start a war with heaven.

As with most times when mortals go meddling in the affairs of the gods, things did not end well for the rebelling people of Atlantis. The gods of the heavens sent the angels who were immortals to handle the affairs of the mortal humans of earth when the declining of Atlantis began. The angels became attached to the mortals because of how beautiful the women were. The human women were like a sweet and forbidden fruit for the angels. The angels angered the gods with their choices and the gods cast them out of the heavens as a consequence to their behaviors. Basically, the gods in the heavens took the ability to time and space travel through portals away and the angels could not go back home. They became known as the fallen angels because they fell from grace of the gods when they mated with the women of earth. The time of Atlantis soon came to an end known to us as the Great Flood. The flood was a consequence to the rebelling humans of Atlantis that started the war with the Tower of Babel. Only a certain few lived through the event to tell the tales of the world-changing events of the war with heaven that caused the fall of Atlantis, the fall of the great Tower of Babel, the Great Flood of epic proportion. Mankind fled in diaspora to many parts of the earth to survive and start over again. The languages on earth became scrambled and people lost the ability to communicate with each other. They  also lost a great wealth of technology.

Some of the survivors of the fall of the tower and of Atlantis  cleverly disguised still live on today. They are known in certain circles as the Immortals.This handful of random survivors, the Immortals appear to live forever, while some others have been killed or have died. They all still have amazing magical powers and treasures. Today we know of their myths and legends as gods and goddesses, heroes and heroines. One of those Immortals that survived was a woman named Nineve, the Lady of the Lake. Her bloodline still exists today, and you have heard of  her most likely in legends of Merlin and King Arthur. Nineve survived the earth's changes and helped to build a new civilization on earth and pass on sacred knowledge like others of her time, such as Thoth the Scribe,  Melchizedek the Priest, Scatthach the Warrior, Parashuram the Avatar of Lord Vishnu and a handful of others. 

 Seal of Melchizedek found at sealofmelchizedek.com

Author's Note: I started this story not knowing where it would lead me. I love the old stories in the Bible, the ones that are so old they come from some other ancient culture. I think the Tower of Babel is a story that actually happened but happened during the time of Atlantis. The Bible also tells us about the fallen angels.The original stories found in the Unit for Noah told the stories from the books of Genesis in the Bible. I tried to keep the main idea of the fall of the Tower of Babel being the fall of Atlantis, when people were sent all over the earth and were unable to communicate for a while.

In my story The Fall of Atlantis, I chose to start the beginning of Nathan's story, a  Hero/Seeker character I have created to retell old stories. It is meant to be an introduction or backstory to the stories to come in the Portfolio I am creating.  Melusina is Nathan's wife who comes from one of those branches of the family tree of Nineve. She exists today in legends from medieval French and English tales of the Merovingian bloodlines. It is said that the royal bloodlines of the Merovingians  are cursed with the line of Melusina the mermaid, a water goddess, but she has lived since the times of Avalon, after the fall of Atlantis. Her story is tied to a Seeker named Nathan that wanders into the path of Melusina unknowingly during the late nineteenth century in France and becomes enchanted by her beauty and magic. Together they set off on an adventures to find treasures left behind by some Immortals, and to take treasure from those immortals who still live!

Bibliography: These stories are a part of the Noah unit. Story source: The Legends of the Jews by Louis Ginzberg(1909).

Week 4, Storytelling, Book of Thoth, Portfolio

Vatican Library libguides.slu.edu

Before the time of the fall of Atlantis, there were many gods and goddesses that roamed the earth, or so we are told in many old documents. Many of these old documents, are hard to find. Most were burned in the great fires of Alexandria. Some books remain yet to be found, but certain ones are held by the Library of the Catholic Church. The book Nathan wanted to find was about the ibis-headed god Thoth and his emerald tablets. The ancient Egyptians held him sacred in their myths as a scribe, and deity of the moon and magic.

Nathan had spent his life almost like the character in the movies called Indiana Jones. He traveled around searching for the treasures of antiquity to learn more about the culture and lives of the amazing people that lived before us. He was obsessed with finding what seemed to be the key to what he was searching for, the Emerald Tablets, the philosopher's stone. He had traced the clues all the way to Rome. Looking around the dizzying sights of the repository of knowledge, he heard a hearty chuckle, and he turned around.

"Why are you laughing at me?" said Nathan.

"Because you read these worthless writings," answered the priest. "If you would read writings that are worth the reading, I can tell you where the Book of Thoth lies hidden."

Nathan was shocked to hear the old man claim to know such esoteric facts, much less say them out loud. Well, whispered really, because they were sitting in the musty old Vatican Library, after all. Nathan was there to procure information on a most sought after relic, but he was puzzled at how an old leathery Catholic priest would come to hold this sort of knowledge. Some things we just never get to know.

"How do I know that what you say is true?" Nathan queried.

Image of a box philipcoppens.com

When the priest had taken the money that was agreed upon before the clandestine meeting, he said ominously to Nathan, "Be suspicious of anything that fulfills all our heart's desires."

The Book is at Koptos in the middle of the river.
In the middle of the river is an iron box,
In the iron box is a bronze box,
In the bronze box is a keté-wood box,
In the keté-wood box is an ivory-and-ebony box,
In the ivory-and-ebony box is a silver box,
In the silver box is a gold box,
And in the gold box is the Book of Thoth.
Round about the great iron box are snakes and scorpions and all manner of crawling things, and above all there is a snake which no man can kill. These are set to guard the Book of Thoth.

The old man handed the information on the paper to Nathan. Tingling with excitement, Nathan headed out to find the lost box and bring this all-encompassing search for immortality to an end. Against the wishes of his wife and family, he would not stop until he accomplished this near impossible mission. But he had prayed too long and hard, and had too much success already to believe he should abandon his fool's task. Indeed, he felt that his God was on his side because of all the sacrifices and promises he made to God if he would just let him find this one thing. Feeling as if his life's work was the single most important thing in the world, Nathan should take the time to quickly call his wife from the airport in Rome, before he makes a quick trip to Egypt to fetch his treasure, to share his great news, but maybe he should wait until he had even better news to share with his gorgeous wife, Melusina.

Thoth, a god of ancient Egypt.  www.ancientegyptonline.co.uk

Author's note: The original story The Book of Thoth: Part One is exciting to me because I have always been fascinated by the Egyptian God Thoth and his Emerald Tablets.Thoth is  the ibis-headed deity that is a scribe and known for his great knowledge that he brought to earth. In my story I inserted the directions to find the tablets and used the exact wording of the Book of Thoth used in the original version. I also find it interesting that there are so many myths using the symbol of a magical box, or an ark that may or may not hold sacred tablets, such as the Ark of the Covenant that holds the Tablets of Moses, the famous box of Pandora that held all sorts of things, etc. it must be an ancient archetype.

 I am having fun lately telling  old stories in a modern twist, which is what I tried to do by updating the when of this story. In the original version there is a character named Nefer-ka-ptah that I have renamed Nathan, and his wife Melusina is Ahura in the original story. There are three parts to this story, and I only concentrated on the first part of the story, how Nathan finds the information of how to find the emerald tablets. Nefer-ka-ptah finds the tablets in the original tale, and when Thoth finds out that they are stolen he seeks revenge on Nefer-ka-ptah and his family. I aim to change the fate of the seeker Nathan so that his meeting with the magician Thoth will be more colorful. More like time travel. Death ends the adventure too soon.

Stay tuned for more episodes of what adventures lay in wait for Nathan. I really like the character Nathan, the Seeker. I would like to use him throughout the portfolio assignment in his many travels across space, time and adventure! He is THE fallen master (the name of my blog).






Bibliography:
Egypt: The Book of Thoth: Part One


This story is part of the Ancient Egypt unit. Story source:Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie (1907).

Week 7, Storytelling, Symbols for Nathan, Portfolio

Found on travellerspoint.comToulouse,France

Nathan and Daniel were brothers and best friends. They spent most of their time growing up together traveling with their parents who were archeologists. Naturally, the boys also developed a curiosity of the ancient world and its mysteries and stayed in the family business of studying antiquities. Nathan and his brother Daniel accepted adventurous job positions to find any links to the lost Templar Treasure and anything that could link old Crusaders to King Solomon's lost treasures.Nathan, the younger of the two brothers, was always the kinder-hearted boy.

Nathan was so excited to be on a quest in Toulouse and walking the grounds where the actual Crusader Raymond the Count of Toulouse walked. He was even more excited to be given the opportunity to find something mystical and ancient connected to King Solomon. Daniel was focused on the reward at the end of this quest, a large sum of money. Nathan did not care too much about the fortune that could be a reward. What he really wanted was to find the ancient knowledge so he could know what the mysteries are all about.

 One day when Nathan and Daniel set off to  the countryside of  Toulouse France that is heavily steeped in medieval folklore. They are looking for clues to lost treasure of the great King Solomon, and they change their lives forever. As they were roaming around the grounds of an old abandoned medieval castle, Nathan found something amazing.

However, it was Daniel that found the Seal of Solomon etched  on an old keystone of a stone arch that was leading off to a wooded area. They knew they were on to the right track. As they walked into the beautiful wooded area they felt as if they were being watched.

"These woods are creepy, like there are ornery little wood fairies just waiting to catch you in their wicked little snares." Nathan softly and playfully chided his brother Nathan.

"Don't tell me that you actually think that those sweet little people would do harm?" Daniel bantered.
Daniel always felt as if Nathan could charm anyone with his smile and big cow eyes and yet, Daniel seemed to cause a reaction in people too, one of distrust.

As they were talking and teasing one another they came to a clearing in the woods and there was a gorgeous little spring lake. It felt so surreal and magical. The boys stopped and looked at each other with eyes grown large, eyebrows drawn high and mouths hanging open. The lake was not the most magical thing there. To the amazement of them both, there stood the most gorgeous women they had ever seen. The boys did not yet know it, but they were sisters. They were standing by the lake talking and giggling and waving at the two brothers. Naturally, the brothers walked over to them, and the closer they got, the more they felt as if something was not quite right.

The divinely beautiful women were kind and asked them their names. Of course they inquired what the boys were doing wandering around their magnificent home. Daniel lied and said they were just tourist and  they were lost. This little lie caused a reaction in one of the women, Melior. It was a strange little fleck of red  that twinkled briefly in her eye that set off alarms for Nathan. But he just as quickly brushed his alarm aside when he looked at his brother Daniel,who was obviously quite taken with the beautiful woman Melior.

 They all went into the home of the women and  sat down at the table where they offered the men food and drink, things got weird. The sister, Melior, who had the red twinkle in her eye, shifted her appearance and took on a more sinister look. Daniel  was too distracted to see it. All he could see was the amount of wealth all around him. Strewn about the castle hung priceless tapestries, silver candle sticks with Hebrew inscriptions, stained glass windows displaying sacred geometry and signets of Solomon's Seals, crystal goblets that seemed to emanate light from within itself, and it went on and on.  Daniel was so focused on how he would  have wealth and fame because he just found the lost treasures of King Solomon. He did not realize that he had walked into the realm of the fairies and sealed his own fate when he ate and drank what was offered by the hospitable women.

Nathan who did not speak lies,did not eat and drink with the fairies. Nathan was not consumed with greed and did not even notice or see the treasures inside the home. Instead his experience became one of a different sort of enchantment. Little did he know or suspect that his fate had changed forever.

 The other woman, whose name is Melusina, could read the heart and intentions of Nathan. She could see that he was destined to be a seeker of knowledge. So she plotted her plans to ensnare him and use him to break the spell that kept the women captive to the property. Since the women were immortals, they had been there for a thousand years give or take. Melusina, being an immortal and a magical being, needed Nathan who was pure of heart to do her dirty work. So she enchanted Nathan. She made him believe that he found a connection to the lost Templar treasures. She made him believe they were madly in love.

When it was time to leave, Daniel had become captive of the fairy realm, never to leave again. Nathan was under a spell and did not even remember his brother. He only knew  he had fallen deeply in love with Melusina. He knew  he had a new quest to set off on. He had to find the sword of Excalibur from the Lady of the Lake to set Melusina free so they could be married. He knew exactly where to go and look.....

Found on hexkaba.tumblr.com

Tibetan Folk Tales: The Golden Squash 

Tibetan Folk Tales: Covetousness

Author's Note:
I chose to read the Tibetan unit because I do not know much about their folklore. I found that I really liked the simplicity and relatability of the stories. For this assignment it made it easy for me to use the morals of greed and pure of heart in the examples of the original stories for my own storyline. In the original the story is about two old men who are friends, one with a kind heart who helps an innocent animal and is repaid in great wealth, which causes the other man to feel greed and envy. When the greedy man sees how the wealth happened, he tried to reproduce the efforts, but dies out of wickedness instead of reaping benefits.

Something I changed in my story is that it takes place in France during the 1800's and not in Tibet. The pure of heart (Nathan) actually becomes a tool or a means of other people's greed. Like the people that Nathan and his brother work for to find the treasures, the brother (heart full of greed) seals his own fate by not being suspicious of the fairy offerings, or even of the fairies themselves. Soon you will see the fate of  Nathan and Melusina as she uses Nathan for her own greed, in the Portfolio of stories that I am creating.

Bibliography:This story is part of the Tibetan Folktales unit. Story source: Tibetan Folk Tales by A.L. Shelton with illustrations by Mildred Bryant (1925).

Week 9, Storytelling, The Stargate

 

Scattach the WarriorFound on spirits-of-lavender.tumblr.com

 The Morrigan of Irish legends by JannaFairyArt

Norse Goddess Freya by SandraKristin

After the time of the Great Flood there came a time when the  world was trying to recover itself with the aid of the Immortals and their advanced Atlantean technological skills.  The Earth Doctor escaped the Great Flood through the stargate he created when he destroyed the earth with the magic baby created by Elder Brother whose screams shook the earth creating the great flood when Atlantis sank.

Before the time of the Great Flood, Earth Doctor made images of clay, and told them to be people. After a while there were so many people that there was not food and water enough for all. They were never sick and none died. At last there grew to be so many they were obliged to eat each other. Since Scattach the Scottish Warrior, also known as the Shadow because she is a vampire, shapeshifts into a Salmon and survives the Great Flood carrying with her sacred knowledge into the next civilization that the Immortals work together to create.

What the Earth Doctor did not know was that a handful of people from the first world had already gone through the portal in in order to survive the earth changes and then they came back through the time travelling wormhole stargate when the earth was finally inhabitable again after the flood and destruction. Because of their ability to shapeshift into their bird forms he bird deities had the ability of swift travel and with the aid of a magical spell they eventually had the ability to time travel like the Earth Doctor.

The Norse Goddess Freya the Hawk and the Irish Goddess the Morrigan the Crow used their skills to help with creating new civilizations. The Immortals used some of the sacred geometry technology of the Earth Architects. This is what Geb the Egyptian God the Duck and the Father of the Snakes, had used when he had helped to create civilizations from Zep Tepi (the first time) to recreate much of what was needed to succeed in rebuilding the human race and earth in this time and space dimension. Thoth the Egyptian God the Ibis hid the knowledge and kept it under a magic spell that can only be found by the one with the pure of heart.

Geb  had appeared to be dead, but he was in transition of shedding his skin like a snake. Geb who is known to be the father of the Snakes used the information that is contained in the Emerald Tablets of Thoth. This is the knowledge of creation itself and the knowledge of immortality. Geb is the serpent who cannot be killed that guards this knowledge of the Emerald Tablets that many throughout time seek and only few will find. 

While Nathan was in the Vatican Library Melchizedek the Priest gave Nathan the directions to locate the spot where Nathan can find the Emerald Tablets of Thoth. Will Nathan find the sacred information in time and achieve initiation and ascend like a god into the next dimension?

Author's note: The original stories from this unit were from many different tribes but had more similarities than differences. In the Native American traditions, they used the symbols of animals to tell the stories of creation. In their holistic beliefs, we are all related to each other. So I chose to find the deities that are represented by the animals and gave them their human personas. In the original story of the Origin of the Sierra Nevadas and Coast Range,the three birds are creating the mountains of the earth. Sounds impossible unless you look at the symbolism of who they could represent. I chose some fun ones! The Hawk is represented by Freya the Norse Goddess, the Crow is represented by the Morrigan of the Irish myths and the duck is Geb the Egyptian father of the god Osiris. 

I got the idea of the stargate portal from the story The Creation of Mankind and the Flood, when the Earth Doctor creates a hole and walks through it. I have been looking for a way to use the stargate to tell a story for Nathan to time travel with.

Thoth the Scribe Found on tumblr.com

Geb the Father of Snakes Found on egiptologia.org

• The Creation of Mankind and the Flood Pima (Arizona)
• Origin of the Sierra Nevadas and Coast Range Yokuts (near Fresno, Cal.)
• Old Man Above and the Grizzlies Shastika (Cal.)
• Myth-Folklore Unit: California and the Old Southwest
• Bibliography: These stories are part of the Southwestern and California Legends unit. Story source: Myths and Legends of California and the Old Southwest by Katharine Berry Judson (1912).

Week 9, Reading Diary, Reading Diary B, Myth-Folklore Unit: California and the Old Southwest

Myth-Folklore Unit: California and the Old Southwest

 Mount Shasta California

Origin of the Sierra Nevadas and Coast Range Yokuts (near Fresno, Cal.)

Then Hawk and Crow took the mud from Duck's beak, and began making the mountains.
They began at the place now known as Ta-hi-cha-pa Pass, and Hawk ade the east range. Crow made the west one. They pushed the mud down hard into the water and then piled it high. They worked toward the north. At last Hawk and Crow met at Mount Shasta. Then their work was done. But when they looked at their mountains, Crow's range was much larger than Hawk's.

What I like the most about this story is how the Hawk and the Crow work hard and then head up to chill at Mount Shasta. Squee! I would do the same. I want a cabin on that mountain so bad I can't even stand it. I have not been to Yosemite yet. I think it is hilarious that they are saying that these birds built these mountains. These are huge mountains in mountain ranges. Some of the most beautiful places on the earth too. I wonder if they equate the birds with the winged messengers, our friends the Nefilim. That would make a lot of sense if magical creatures were building the mountains, because these tiny little birds don't exactly explain this well.

Week 9, Reading Diary, Reading Diary A,Myth-Folklore Unit: California and the Old Southwest

Myth-Folklore Unit: California and the Old Southwest

Sunrise Mount Shasta California


For my reading diary A this week I chose to read the folklore and myths from the California and southwest because they appeal the most to me. I grew up in the southwest, but my heart is in the northwest. I really like the readings by the Pima Indians The Creation of Mankind and the Flood Pima (Arizona)
After the world was ready, Earth Doctor made all kinds of animals and creeping things. Then he made images of clay, and told them to be people. After a while there were so many people that there was not food and water enough for all. They were never sick and none died.
This is a neat way of explaining death. I am intrigued by the Earth Doctor. I would not at all be surprised to find Doctor Who behind all this! LOL.
Earth Doctor made a hole through the earth with his stick, and through that he went, coming out safe, but alone, on the other side.Okay, this screams of a wormhole, time travel! I have been waiting for this!
The people began to increase in numbers, just as they had done before, but Elder Brother shortened their lives, so the earth did not become so crowded. But Elder Brother did not like the people created by Earth Doctor, so he planned to destroy them again. So Elder Brother planned to create a magic baby.The screams of the baby shook the earth. They could be heard for a great distance. Then Earth Doctor called all the people together, and told them there would be a great flood. He sang a magic song and then bored a hole through the flat earth-plain through to the other side. Some of the people went into the hole to escape the flood that was coming, but not very many got through.

I am speechless about Elder Brother and this magic baby whose screams shake the earth. Unless, this is the atomic bomb that we read of in the Bhagavadgita. I fully believe that happened and this could be a great way to explain it. I have often believed that the desert of the southwest is very connected to India and Egypt, as well as the Mayans. It sounds to me like they opened a portal and left.

The other story I really enjoyed from this half of the unit is the 

Old Man Above and the Grizzlies Shastika (Cal.)

Little Daughter climbed up to the smoke hole and put out her arm. But Little Daughter put out her head also. She wanted to see the world. Little Daughter wanted to see the rivers and trees, and the white foam on the Bitter Waters. Wind caught Little Daughter by the hair. Wind pulled her out of the smoke hole and blew her down the mountain.

This sounds to me so much like she went through a stargate portal. It sounds like where she came from they sure had a lot of power too, since her dad can make a bear look down and walk on four legs and no longer talk to humans. Actually it doesn't even sound much like little daughter is human, but her and the bears made humans. 

Week 8 Review Week, Reading Plan

Found on indulgy.com

Week 9

Myth-Folklore Unit: California and the Old Southwest

half unit:

Myth-Folklore Unit: Mississippi Valley and the Great Lakes

Week 10

Myth-Folklore Unit: Pacific Northwest

half unit:

Myth-Folklore Unit: Tejas Legends

Alice doorknob in Toon Town by sfgamchick on Flickr

Week 11

Myth-Folklore Unit: Alice in Wonderland

half unit:

Myth-Folklore Unit: More English Fairy Tales

Week 12

Myth-Folklore Unit: Welsh Fairy Book (Thomas)

half unit:

Myth-Folklore Unit: More Celtic Fairy Tales

Found on pinerly.com

Week 13
Literary Works:Inferno

half unit:

Myth-Folklore Unit: Europa's Fairy Book

Week 14

Myth-Folklore Unit: Hans Christian Andersen

half unit:

Myth-Folklore Unit: The Heptameron of Margaret, Queen of Navarre

Week 8 Reflections,Looking Forward

Week 8,

Halfway done! I look upon finishing this class as bitter sweet. I look forward to the end of the semester when I will have a repose from piles of homework and looming deadlines. However, I will miss this class, which is why I plan to take Epic of India course in the spring semester. I was not interested in it much until I took this class. I am excited for that! But I digress.
I am excited about my portfolio. This is one of the best things to happen to me in years as far as assignments go. I am having fun, I am learning and I feel like I am gathering much needed materials and skills to put towards my future endeavors.

In this class specifically I am looking forward to reading the units of the British and European units. I think my characters are going to have so much fun! Time travel and such I am hoping will play a key role in the new units ahead. Maybe a portal or a dream. So many ideas, only a few assignments to work them in! I think I am on track with my grades and assignments. I will continue to try to work ahead whenever possible in this class. I like to work on it because it is fun and because I am getting a lot out of the work I put into it.

Tintagel Castle by Vincent Hoogendoorn on Fivehundredpx

Week 8,Reflections: Looking Back

Week 8,
Writing:
It is half way through the semester! In some ways, it is passing quickly and in others it is dragging on. This class is amazing. I have always wanted to take a mythology and folklore class and I am blessed to have taken this one. I have wanted to write stories but haven't found the time since high school. Most of my college writing has been focused on writing reports. This class has caused me to move into new areas and get out of my comfort zones. This class has helped me to improve in all of my writing skills, because of the amazing feedback I receive from Laura the professor and also from my fellow classmates. I really love it when people point out where I am having a weak point. I really do want to improve my writing skills.
Reading:
I have enjoyed most of the stories I have read and written. Two stories I wrote were soul draining hard. I did not really like those units I read as well as the stories I wrote. Three of my stories so far I feel are connected and coming together, like a story waiting to be told that is oozing out of me rather than having to work hard to make it happen. I have really enjoyed reading all the mythology and folklore units. I am not as drawn to some of the African and Asian tales because of how much they relate to animals. I like the Greek and Roman so far the most who have all the crazy gods and goddesses doing crazy things. I am looking forward to lots more good things to come in units ahead.
Interactions:
Every week I get to see what my classmates are up to. It is so much fun. Some of our classmates are super creative and talented. I get very intrigued and look forward to being able to share our projects with each other. That will be a treat to look back over! It is easy for me to feel like I am socializing and getting to know others in class. It is helpful that I know my sister. I also know a student in the Indian Epics class from my Latin classes. Everyone is super friendly so it seems fun to get to know everyone.
Time:
I started this class early, working ahead has been super helpful. At a few points in the semester I was ahead in all my classes. But I really am having a heavy load this semester and I have managed to fall behind a few times because of projects like papers and tests. I started this class hoping to only need to do homework once a week. I like that approach. I like to be able to spend a whole day focusing and getting tasks done and not having to worry the rest of the week. But there has been times where I needed hours to study for another class where I had to work on this one all week. It is actually fine both ways. The flexibility of it being a set your own schedule is keeping me sane!
Location:
I often do my homework in my bedroom, on my bed and using my laptop. My cats are usually right there cheering me on. During my days on campus I will often read units on my smartphone between classes. I enjoy the readings and it give me something to do while eating lunch.
Growth Mindset:
I truly have not had much time to put efforts towards this yet.
Curation:
I try to check out Pinterest daily, and I try to add anything that I find could be useful. I have only done one extra credit for this I think. I have been trying to keep neat little folders for my images and stuff. I appreciate the efforts to create positive habits that are time saving and life skill enhancing!

Week 7, Extra Reading Diary,Folklore of Laos,

Photo via World Press Photo.
World's largest cave.

Myth-Folklore Unit: Folklore of Laos half unit part a

The Spirit-Guarded Cave

All devices were tried to obtain the treasure, and from all parts of the country the people came to try to overcome the charm which the spirits had placed upon the cave, but no one was able to break it. One man went even into the treasure chamber and filled his hands with the precious stones, but he was overcome by a deadly sickness and was forced to replace the jewels in the treasure chest and flee for his life so as to escape the wrath of the guarding spirits.

This tidbit is awesome, it reminds me of so many other stories, but especially the stories I have been reading in this class, one particular that has to do with the story of Thoth and the Emerald Tablets. I may need to use this concept again later. I often think back to the line in the Emerald Tablets story that talks about the snake that no one can kill. I think it's part of a charm and a bit of a riddle. I absolutely love that spirits are watching over this treasure in the Laos folktale. I feel like these stories most likely have more truth to them than tales. Coming from the Southwestern United States, I am aware of many Native American tales as well as some from South America and Mexico. They too have many tales about treasures and caves. It is also thought that the spirits safeguard the secrets. This was my favorites story in the Laos folktales. But I liked how all of them seemed to flow together, and they were easy reads.

(Plain of Jars, Laos)

The Mountain Spirits and the Stone Mortars

The spirits departed with the money, and to this day, the stone mortars are scattered about the streets of that city, and when strangers ask why they are there and what use is made of them, this story will be told, and all people say it is verily the truth, for do you not see them with your eyes, and how else could they have come here, had not the spirits brought them?

This is my second favorite story in this unit, which is about the stone mortars. This again strikes a chord with me because it relates to other megalithic stone cultures that are scattered all over the globe. I do not know much about Laos, or the Asian cultures in general so I get excited when I find things that fit into my interests and relates to other neat things. I think it is safe to say that the people who live in Laos area did not make these large stone objects, which is why they say the spirits did it. This is why this stuff gets put into the myth category because it is an unknown. Perfect for writing some good stories about!

Bilbiography:This story is part of the Laos unit. Story source: Laos Folk-Loreby Katherine Neville Fleeson, with photographs by W.A. Briggs (1899).