Before the Coming of the White Man
—The Beaver’s Song
I follow the river
In quest of a young beaver.
Up the river I go
Through the cut willow path I go
In quest of a young beaver.
—The Bear’s Song
A foot,
A foot with toes,
A foot with toes came.
He came with a foot with toes.
Aging as he came with a foot with toes.
—The Owl’s Song
I am the owl.
I sit on the spruce tree.
My coat is gray.
I have big eyes.
My head has two points.
The white smoke from my tobacco can be seen
As I sit on the spruce tree.
The little rabbit comes in sight
Nearby where I sit on the spruce tree.
I think soon my claws will get into its back
As I sit on the spruce tree.
Now it is dawn, now it is dawn.
The old man owl’s head has two points.
Ailleen O’Bryan, The Diné: Origin Myths of the Navaho Indians
From American Indian Prose and Poetry
G.P. Putnam Sons, NY, 1974
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