Post by Okwes on Apr 14, 2008 12:14:41 GMT -5
Ghost of the White Deer - Chickasaw
A story of the Chickasaw People of Oklahoma
A brave, young warrior of the Chickasaw Nation fell in love with the
daughter of a chief. The chief did not like the young man, who was called
Blue Jay. So the chief invented a price for the bride that he was sure that
Blue Jay could not pay.
"Bring me the hide of the white deer," said the chief. The Chickasaws
believed that animals that were all-white were magical. "The price for my
daughter is one white deer." Then the chief laughed. The chief knew that an
all-white deer, an albino, was very rare and would be very hard to find.
White deerskin was the best material to use in a wedding dress, and the best
white deer skin came from the albino deer.
Blue Jay went to his beloved, whose name was Bright Moon. "I will return
with your bride price in one moon, and we will be married. This I promise
you." Taking his best bow and his sharpest arrows, Blue Jay began to hunt.
Three weeks went by, and Blue Jay was often hungry, lonely, and scratched by
briars. Then, one night during a full moon, Blue Jay saw a white deer that
seemed to drift through the moonlight. When the deer was very close to where
Blue Jay hid, he shot his sharpest arrow. The arrow sank deep into the
deer's heart. But instead of sinking to his knees to die, the deer began to
run. And instead of running away, the deer began to run toward Blue Jay, his
red eyes glowing, his horns sharp and menacing. A month passed and Blue Jay
did not return as he had promised Bright Moon. As the months dragged by, the
tribe decided that he would never return. But Bright Moon never took any
other young man as a husband, for she had a secret. When the moon was
shining as brightly as her name. Bright Moon would often see the white deer
in the smoke of the campfire, running, with an arrow in his heart. She lived
hoping the deer would finally fall, and Blue Jay would return. To this day
the white deer is sacred to the Chickasaw People, and the white deerskin is
still the favorite material for the wedding dress.
www.ilhawaii.net/~stony/lore128.html
A story of the Chickasaw People of Oklahoma
A brave, young warrior of the Chickasaw Nation fell in love with the
daughter of a chief. The chief did not like the young man, who was called
Blue Jay. So the chief invented a price for the bride that he was sure that
Blue Jay could not pay.
"Bring me the hide of the white deer," said the chief. The Chickasaws
believed that animals that were all-white were magical. "The price for my
daughter is one white deer." Then the chief laughed. The chief knew that an
all-white deer, an albino, was very rare and would be very hard to find.
White deerskin was the best material to use in a wedding dress, and the best
white deer skin came from the albino deer.
Blue Jay went to his beloved, whose name was Bright Moon. "I will return
with your bride price in one moon, and we will be married. This I promise
you." Taking his best bow and his sharpest arrows, Blue Jay began to hunt.
Three weeks went by, and Blue Jay was often hungry, lonely, and scratched by
briars. Then, one night during a full moon, Blue Jay saw a white deer that
seemed to drift through the moonlight. When the deer was very close to where
Blue Jay hid, he shot his sharpest arrow. The arrow sank deep into the
deer's heart. But instead of sinking to his knees to die, the deer began to
run. And instead of running away, the deer began to run toward Blue Jay, his
red eyes glowing, his horns sharp and menacing. A month passed and Blue Jay
did not return as he had promised Bright Moon. As the months dragged by, the
tribe decided that he would never return. But Bright Moon never took any
other young man as a husband, for she had a secret. When the moon was
shining as brightly as her name. Bright Moon would often see the white deer
in the smoke of the campfire, running, with an arrow in his heart. She lived
hoping the deer would finally fall, and Blue Jay would return. To this day
the white deer is sacred to the Chickasaw People, and the white deerskin is
still the favorite material for the wedding dress.
www.ilhawaii.net/~stony/lore128.html