Skip to main content

Reading Notes "Why the Possums tail is bare"

Once there was a possum with an extremely beautiful tail. His tail was full of beautiful fur that glistened whenever the light would hit it. This tail was full of different colors of fur which were patterned in the most eye-pleasing way.

The possum knew he had a beautiful tail so every chance he had to flaunt it he took. When he was out in public he would make sure to walk in a way that showcased his tail and when he sat down he always made sure to sit in a way so his tail could be seen by all.

The pride that the possum had for his tail annoyed the rabbit. The rabbit had his tail torn off by the bear so he held resentment towards the possum. A party with all of the animals was coming up and it was the rabbit's job to spread the news. The rabbit devised a plan to finally put the possum in its place so when the time came the rabbit told the grasshopper who was very good at cutting hair to take care of the possums tail.

So when the time came the grasshopper went to the possum and promised to make his tail look wonderful. The possum was very thankful towards the grasshopper for this favor but little did he know what was about to happen. The next day the possum went to the dance and showed everyone his tail. He bragged and said "Look how perfect my tail looks!" He expected compliments but instead, he received laughter. He was very confused about why the other animals were laughing instead of being in awe until he looked down at his tail.

His tail was bald and pink! The possum was so embarrassed he immediately fell to the ground, laid on his back, and gave a sheepish grin. This is why anytime a possum is caught off guard he acts in this way.

Bibliography:This story is part of the Cherokee Myths unit. Story source: Myths of the Cherokee by James Mooney (1900).

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Coyote and the Snake Reading Notes

The Coyote and the Snake One day the coyote was walking along the trail when he heard a voice say Stop! The coyote looked around and he couldn't see anything. He disregarded the warning and kept moving. Once again he heard someone yell stop. He looked around again and he saw nothing until he heard a voice say "Walk over me, or move out of the way." The coyote looked down and found a snake in the path right below him. The snake said that he has been traveling this trail for years and he would simply not move. The coyote said the same thing and that he would simply not move. The coyote said he would have to keep going if the snake moved or not. The snake made the threat that if the coyote stepped over him the snake would have no choice but to kill him. The coyote didn't believe him and called his bluff. He walked over him and the snake bit the coyote. The coyote didn't feel anything and then mocked the snake. The coyote kept walking on and when he got to the...

Story Week 13 "Alice's Fall"

Alice looking down the hole Alice followed the rabbit until she came to a hole. She saw the rabbit jump down the hole and contemplated going after him or not. She looked back at her sister reading on the hillside and thought to herself, "There is no way I am going back to be that bored." So she got down on her hands and knees and peered into the rabbit hole to see what she could find.  The hole was very dark so she squinted to see if she could see a clearer picture. She still couldn't see anything so she leaned in to see if that would clear up her vision. Once she started to lean the ground started to crumble out from under her. She started to push back to leave the hole but the ground just started to crumble more. Her hands slipped out from under her and she fell into the hole.  Alice let out a piercing scream, then another, then another. She was frantically yelling due to the fear that she would splat on the ground. She just kept screaming and falling unt...

Time Strategies

Procrastination Graph Link Time management is something I struggle with in almost every aspect of my life. Whether it comes to assignments, gifts, dates, scheduling, and almost everything else, procrastination always has a hold on me. For example, I am writing this blog post almost one hour before it is due. Procrastination is in my nature, and it always has been. Thankfully I have people around me who keep me in check. In Caroline Webb's article  How To Beat Procrastination , I saw that she spoke of the tactic of pre-committing, publicly. This tactic has helped me out greatly. Thankfully I have friends who want the best for me and know how capable I am of doing good work so if I tell them the priorities I have and the things I need to complete they often remind me to complete my work and stay on schedule.  One of my main objectives in life is to surround myself with good people and I think that that has helped me a lot with the decisions I make because of th...