Potawatomi's Beginning...

The story I have to tell- was told long ago to me, About the creation of the Potawatomi Nation; In the beginning the Creator made Anishabe, And the Creator told Anishabe to name all of his creations, Anishabe set out with a wolf, his companion, And he went around naming everything; From the mountains and the canyons, To the Summer and the Spring; He became lonely realizing, he alone had no mate, And as he traveled everywhere searching, He traveled towards the Great Lakes; And there he heard a woman singing, Her song was a thing of beauty, About the home she was making for them; Anishabe crossed the lake to meet her, finally, The daughter of the Firekeeper-And quite a gem Their’s was the first unity bond, It is where life came from; Of each other they were inordinately fond; Their union gave life to four sons, Each of their sons went a different way, The First son traveled North, it’s color is White, henceforth; Given the first gift of the Creator-sweet grass-braided in a bouquet, He married the daughter of the Spirit of the North; The second sun traveled East, into the rising sun, He learned that fire is the essence of life; He was given the second gift-herbs to speak with the One, East is the color Yellow, East’s daughter became his wife; The third son traveled South, known as “The Way of The Woman”, The way of seeds and all that give life, the color of South is Red; He was given the gift of cedar-to purify and prepare food for his clan And to the daughter of the Spirit of the South he was wed. The last son traveled west, towards the mountain highlands, He learned that the setting sun represents the circle of life; Black is the color of West-Sage was the gift for his hands, Married to the Spirit of the West’s daughter, Black stands for strife. This is the story of the Creator, That my Grandmother told to me, How my culture was started, And what our banner means. ~I've been holding on to this a while-Hope you enjoy the beginning of my culture~ ~3rd Place in the "Broad Horizons" Contest by Deborah Guzzi~