Keepers of the Earth: Native American Stories, with Environmental Activities for Children. - book reviews

Whole Earth Review, Summer, 1991 by Nancy Schimmel

The meat of this set is the fine selection of Native American stories from the US and Canada in the main volume, but the soul is in the slim teacher's guide, where the authors discuss the meaning of stories in Native American cultures and talk about environmental education as necessarily including feelings and values, as well as information.

How Coyote Was the Moon

(Kalispel -- Idaho)

A long time ago there was no moon. The people got tired of going around at night in the dark. There had been a moon before, but someone stole it. So they gathered together and talked about it.

"We need to have a moon," they said. "Who will be the moon?

"I will do it," said Yellow Fox. They placed him in the sky. But he shone so brightly that he made things hot at night. Thus they had to take him down.

Then the people went to Coyote. "Would you like to be the moon? Do you think you could do a better job?"

"I sure would," Coyote said. Then he smiled. He knew that if he became the moon he could look down and see everything that was happening on Earth.

They placed Coyote up in the sky. He did not make the nights too hot and bright. For a time the people were pleased.

"Coyote is doing a good job as the moon," they agreed.

But Coyote, up there in the sky, could see everything that was happening on Earth. He could see whenever someone did something they were not supposed to do and he just couldn't keep quiet.

"Hey," he would shout, so loudly everyone on Earth could hear him, "that man is stealing meat from the drying racks." He would look down over people's shoulders as they played games in the moonlight. "Hey," he would shout, "that person there is cheating at the moccasin game."

Finally, all the people who wished to do things in secret got together. "Take Coyote out of the sky," they said. "He is making too much noise with all of his shouting."

So Coyote was taken out of the sky. Someone else became the moon. Coyote could no longer see what everyone on Earth was doing, but that hasn't stopped him from still trying to snoop on everyone else's business ever since.