|| A Native-American folktale ||
There was once a time when there were but two persons in the world, Old Man and Old Woman.
One time, when they were traveling about, Old Man met Old Woman, who said, “Now, let us come to an agreement of some kind; let us decide how the people shall live.”
“Very well”, said the old man ” Let’s begin”
Thus they started..
“Well”, said Old Man, “let the people have eyes and mouths in their faces; but they shall be straight in line, one eye below the other and then the mouth.”
“No,” said Old Woman, “we will not have them that way. We will have the eyes and mouth in the faces, as you say; but they shall all be set crosswise,with eyes side by side and mouth beneath in the center “
“Well,” said Old Man, “the people shall have ten fingers on each hand.”
“Oh, no!” said Old Woman. “That will be too many. They will be in the way. There shall be four fingers and one thumb on each hand.”
“But why not,” said Old Man, “people can hold many things at a time”
“Next thing you will say is why can’t people have ten hands”, said the Old Woman.
“That has not occurred to me. Let the people have ten hands”, said Old Man
“No, no! We are talking about people, not centipedes.
The people will have two hands, five fingers on each”, said the Old Woman
“Well,” said Old Man, “we shall beget children. The genitals shall be at our navels.”
“No,” said Old Woman, “that will make childbearing too easy; there would be too many offsprings and the people will not care for their children. The genitals shall be at the pubes.”
So they went on until they had provided for everything in the lives of the people that were to be.
Then Old Woman asked what they should do about life and death.
Should the people always live, or should they die?
They had some difficulty in agreeing on this; but finally Old Man said, “I will tell you what I will do. I will throw a buffalo chip into the water, and, if it floats, the people die for four days and live again. But, if it sinks, they will die forever.”
So he threw it in, and it floated.
“No,” said Old Woman, “we will not decide in that way. I will throw in this rock. If it floats, the people will die for four days. If it sinks, the people will die forever.”
Then Old Woman threw the rock out into the water, and it sank to the bottom.
“There,” said she, “it is better for the people to die forever; for, if they did not die forever, they would never appreciate life and there would be no sympathy in the world”
“Well said,” said Old Man, let it be that way.”
So it came to be that way.
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