Legend has it
that in the lush forests of Minnesota, where the pine trees grew tall, lived a
pack of magnificent creatures. The natives of this area called them wolves. No
one bothered these animals because they were in control of the forest since the
beginning of time. Each day this particular pack of wolves hunted, scaled the
forest floor, and tended to their young in silence. The pack coexisted in peace
for many years until the king of the pack grew older.
This king was
different than the ones before him because he had a hunger for power. He could
not sleep at night knowing that other packs lived in forests adjacent to this
one. Even though this pack controlled the forests for nearly a hundred miles,
this did not satisfy the king. He wanted more land. Days came when he would
attempt to drive the other packs away, but didn't have the strength to
overthrow their lands. This frustrated him because he knew that he was the
strongest wolf in all the land.
The wolf king
cried for days. Days turned into months and the wolf began to neglect his very
own pack that loved him dearly. The crying continued until a being felt sorrow
for the wolf's story. One night, a mysterious being came down from the stars
and stood before the wolf king. The king pleaded his wishes and the being
agreed to grant them, but only under one circumstance. In two years the wolf
must leave this world and live among the stars.
The king agreed
to this vow and soon enough the rival wolf packs disappeared. For two years the
wolf king lived in harmony and adored his wondrous land. The food and land was
plentiful, almost too plentiful for such a small pack of wolves. Exactly two
years later the being came back from the stars and reminded the king of their
agreement. When this time came, the king refused to retreat into the stars and
leave his beautiful kingdom.
The being grew angry from this deep
betrayal and, out of spite, took the king's closest brother into the stars.
This greatly saddened the wolves because everyone admired everyone. The wolves
began shouting into the night sky. The story was heartbreaking to all packs of
wolves living on this earth. To this day, the wolves still howl at the stars in
hope that the king's lost brother will someday find his way back home.
Author's Note:
I based this story as an adaption of stories based within the Nigerian Folktales unit. The unit is full of origin stories explaining why things are they way they are today. It is always great to hear an interesting back story to concepts. For instance, many of these stories were "Why the Bat Flies by Night," "Why the Sun and Moon Live in the Sky," and "Why the Moon Waxes and Wanes." When reading these stories I immediately knew I was going to use this concept. I thought of wolves and why they howl at night. I took this idea and went with it.
Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria
Elphinstone Dayrell (1910)
Hey Matt!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your story. I liked how it explained why wolves howl up to the sky. It was really creative and interesting. I also liked how the moral of the story was do not make any promises you cannot keep. It shows that things do not come easily or freely. If you want something you have to work for it or be able to offer something.
Hey Matt! I really like how you used this super cool origin story and made it your own. I am a big fan of origin stories so I really enjoyed reading yours. I really like when I read people's stories and they actually make me want to read the story they originally came from. Your story did that, so good job! I also thought your imagery and description were really good and helped bring the story to life.
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