Thursday, December 10, 2009

THE BEAUTY IN SPIDERS WEB


It takes time and patience to design a web

Beauty does surround us if we but look for it... Just today with coffee in hand I was looking out at the beauty that surrounds me... and there I saw it!  Looming over the pool; the sun catching it just so perfectly at first light. Quickly I told the four-leggeds' we must get a picture of such beauty and share it this morning! Just imagine the time and concentration that went into that masterpiece and right there over the pool!  Quite lovely to be sure, don't you think?

And so it is, today I will tell you the story and power of spider... "Iktome"
A Cherokee Legend to be sure, and a lesson if you will open yourself to find it! 



Long ago the Cherokee people lived in a dark world. They had no Sun or Moon or light of any kind. It was so dark that the animals, birds, and insects kept bumping into each other. One day the animals called a meeting to see what could be done. They did not like the way things were, they were not happy, but they had each other; they were community. Woodpecker spoke first. "I've heard from others," he said, "that there are others on the other side of the world and they have light. Maybe if we go there, they will give us some."  "I'll go," said Owl. "We all know it is I who can see in the dark." "No, I should go," Opossum said. "If they are stingy with their light, I'll steal some and hide it under my bushy tail." Why they sounded just like folks do in committees today... each with a better idea of how things should be done! Each with a better thought, a better idea! But finally, all agreed, so Opossum started off on the journey at once.

As he headed East, the world grew lighter. Soon, he had to squint to keep from being blinded, but he kept on going until he found the Sun. Carefully he placed a small piece of Sun under his tail. And then he set out for home just as fast as his short legs would go, but that piece of Sun was so hot it set his tail on fire!


The people who lived in the land of the Sun demanded that he return the piece he took. Poor Opossum. He now had to squint, his fine bushy tail was ruined, and the animals still had no light. He was just pitiful.



The animals called another meeting, and this time ole' Buzzard volunteered. "I can fly far and fast," he boasted. "I can bring back the light in no time." He flew East and stayed up high so the people couldn't see him. Then he dived straight down, snatched a piece of the Sun, and hid it on top of his head. But as he was flying away, his beautiful head feathers caught on fire. Buzzard dropped the piece of Sun at once, but his head had turned bright red and was completely bald, just as it is today.



The animals met once more, "What shall we do now?" they asked. "We must have light!"



Grandmother Spider crawled out of the nearby grass. "You big creatures have done all you can," she said. "Perhaps a smaller creature could do better."



"You'll get burned up!" squawked the Owl. "Maybe not," answered Grandmother Spider. They were so desperate for light they agreed to let her go. Grandmother Spider felt around until she found some damp clay. Then she rolled it into the shape of a bowl. "It will dry slowly as I travel in the dark," she said to herself. "That way it won't crack."



As she traveled, she spun a trail of thread to find her way home.

When she came to the place of the Sun people, she quickly reached out and took a piece of the Sun. She dropped it into her bowl and covered it. Then she quietly followed her thread-trail back home.

When the animals uncovered Grandmother Spider's bowl, they could hardly believe their eyes. The first light they had ever seen shot out its rays. Even today, the spider's web is shaped like the rays of the Sun.
 From that time on, not only did the Cherokee people have light, but pottery making became honored work among them.

And there you go... For that I give thanks, AND SO IT IS!

This morning the sun shines and shows me spiders web which looks amazingly like the sun's rays!  Be gentle with you today...


Walk In Beauty!

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http://www.healingheartaches.com/

author of Healing Heartaches, Infinity Publishing

2 comments:

Irene said...

Spider webs & sunshine, hum...........
Sounds real to me !
Another day to " breathe " IRM

Anonymous said...

lOVED THIS STORY TOO. THANKS FOR SHARING THE INDIAN STORIES, I LOVE THE REFLECTIONS.