Tuesday, May 21, 2019

Sky Woman's People



In the long ago,
when the world was young,
Sky Woman fell to earth,
landing on the back of a turtle,
clutching seeds and dreams.

Her (and our) instructions:
to use her gifts for good.

The animals helped her
to make a world.
Plants made food
from seeds and light and water,
and gave it all away
that all might live.

The hole in the sky
through which Sky Woman fell
is still sending beams of light,
bathing we wayward humans,
in an effort to awaken
our remembering.

The light is urging us
to transform this world
back to its beginnings,
when plants, animals and sky
breathed us into the world,
and everything was one.

We are being asked
to remember:
we are all
Sky Woman's people.


for Sumana's prompt at Midweek Motif at Poets United: Light. And shared with the Tuesday Platform at Real Toads.  This poem was inspired by legends of the indigenous people, handed down in oral tradition. I especially love the legend of Skywoman, arriving on Turtle Island.


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23 comments:

  1. RommyMay 21, 2019 at 11:18 AM

    Remembering can be an ache for those of us who do, especially when we see how much has been forgotten. But I think we can use that ache to keep us going, and help remind the world of what it's forgotten.

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  2. Kim M. RussellMay 21, 2019 at 12:27 PM

    I so enjoy poems and stories that begin ‘In the long ago, when the world was young’, Sherry, and I love the image in my head of Sky Woman on the back of a turtle. This is such beautiful mythology with a moral.

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  3. brudbergMay 21, 2019 at 1:32 PM

    I think we all know, we just don't dare to find new ways to live.

    Denial grows out of fear.

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  4. Anmol (HA)May 21, 2019 at 2:37 PM

    This is such a beautiful legend — I hope that more of us would listen to the song of Sky Woman as well as promote and fight for the rights of indigenous people and local communities.
    "in an effort to awaken/our remembering" is such a lovely way of putting it. :-)

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  5. BrendanMay 21, 2019 at 3:18 PM

    We so need your memory.

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  6. robkistnerMay 21, 2019 at 3:22 PM

    Too bad we just keep screwing it up for Skywoman! When will we ever learn?

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  7. Sanaa RizviMay 21, 2019 at 3:41 PM

    Oh gosh this is incredibly gorgeous, Sherry!❤️

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  8. tonispencerMay 21, 2019 at 4:23 PM

    I love your myth poems from long ago. This one is spectacular

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  9. rallentandaMay 21, 2019 at 8:12 PM

    This is like our Aboriginal Dreamtime Story. Beautiful poem.

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  10. JimMay 21, 2019 at 11:27 PM

    And if we don't, Sherry, Sky Woman's mother, Mother Nature, will reclaim Earth.
    p.s. Thank you for peeking on my 'end' post of Sunday. I haven't read why the jockey fell. Sometimes a saddle isn't cinched tight and it slips topside down.
    ..

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  11. Old EggMay 22, 2019 at 1:12 AM

    Sadly over the last few decades we have been learning how not to live on Earth as we abuse and destroy it for future generations in the mistaken belief that there will some panacea for our stupidity later on. The trouble is we need action now.

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  12. ThotpurgeMay 22, 2019 at 2:19 AM

    That hole in the sky is being choked with carbon emissions...

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  13. signed...bkmMay 22, 2019 at 8:45 AM

    yes we do need sky woman more than ever ...the earth is in need of her tender care...bkm

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  14. Gillena CoxMay 22, 2019 at 9:07 AM

    "Plants made food
    from seeds and light and water,
    and gave it all away
    that all might live."

    This is just a wonderful report
    Thanks for dropping by my blog Sherry

    Much🖤love

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  15. HelenMay 22, 2019 at 9:15 AM

    A universal truth .....

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  16. LoriMay 22, 2019 at 9:23 AM

    "to awaken our remembering" love that line. Like the sun wakes us in the morning but the light calls us, to awaken both mind and spirit.

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  17. ElizabethMay 22, 2019 at 10:11 AM

    I remember the first time I heard the story of Skywoman. Was looking for help with a History project and went to Onieda Nation's Museum, only to find my best friend from high school in charge. We spent the afternoon discussing my project, our shared memories, and at some point, amidst all of that Native culture, she told me the story of Sky Woman. I never forgot it...Thanks for the memory.

    Elizabeth

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  18. TeresaMay 22, 2019 at 12:17 PM

    We teach this myth in English 11. I love it! Your poem is perfect for it.

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  19. Eileen T O'Neill .....May 22, 2019 at 12:59 PM

    Sherry,
    what a sad and difficult world, where the wisdom and gifts from Sky Woman, are pehaps needed more than ever, especially for those who fail to see the light of better sense...

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  20. SusanMay 22, 2019 at 2:29 PM

    " The hole in the sky
    through which Sky Woman fell
    is still sending beams of light . . . "
    A lovely thought. So may it be! When all the elements work together, we can be reborn. I hope we need not die first.

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  21. TruedessaMay 22, 2019 at 4:01 PM

    One of my favorite stories. I took a walk the other day and saw some turtles bathing on a log and I thought of the legend of sky-woman.

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  22. Sumana RoyMay 22, 2019 at 10:10 PM

    We are not the ones to listen to Light. So we will suffer. Once we are eliminated this planet will thrive. It will. Sigh.

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  23. Rosemary Nissen-WadeMay 24, 2019 at 11:57 PM

    Lovely story. I echo your prayers that we remember in time.

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