Week 10 Storytelling: Clouds get their head out of the clouds

Clouds get their head out of the clouds


It was a stormy Wednesday afternoon in the Shin-ge-bis tribe sacred lands. Trees were shaking and the animals were crying out. The native peoples of the tribe had taken shelter in their homes and hadn't come out since the storm had started that morning.

In the sky above, among the lightning, harsh winds and heavy rain, were two brother clouds, Omi and Oli. They were in a fight. Omi had called Oli a mean name after they had played a game of soccer. Omi was so upset that he yelled and screamed that morning, which had started the storm. They had ultimately caused this harsh storm, as the clouds ruled the sky. If the brothers were happy, then the sky was clear and blue. If the brothers were mad, the sky was a storm. If the brothers were sad, not only did it rain, but it was cold and windy. The brothers today, though, were mad.

Source: Beta News

So the storm raged on and on. After a week, the people didn't know what to do. So they prayed to the winds and instead of a rain dance, they did a wind dance. The children would get dressed up in all their rain gear and venture outside and brace themselves against the wind. The children liked dancing in the rain and the wind. But they were still learning the difference between their rain dances and their wind dances. A rain dance mean that they danced and prayed for the clouds to bring them rain to replenish the earth. A wind dance was when they danced and prayed to the clouds to change the weather from whatever it was. Unfortunately, the children and the people learned that it was hard to get much out of the wind dance. The people only did the wind dance when a storm had erupted. The clouds didn't ever seem to care. Of course they didn't. The clouds caused storm when they were fighting.

Back in the sky, the brothers still didn't care that the people were being affected. They cared more that each of them weren't going to give in then they did about helping the people. They continued to fight and they caused so much damage to the tribe's village. The storm had been raging on for 3 days now with no end in sight.

So the people decided to rebuild their village to fit the harsh winds and storms that continued to come. Many got sick for being outside in the rain for so long, but they knew that they would have to live in a safe spot if the storms continued — if the clouds didn't stop their feud.


Then the brothers finally saw the damage they were causing. They looked at each other for a long time. Oli apologized. Omi accepted. They decided to stop the fight for the good of the people. The people did one last wind dance, and the winds and storms finally stopped. They were so happy that they cried and thanked the clouds.


Bibliography:
This story is from American Indian Fairy Tales and based off the Shin-ge-bis Fools the North Wind story.

Author's Note:
This story is loosely based on the Shin-ge-bis Fools the North Wind story.

Reading Notes: Native American Marriage Tales, Reading A

This story is part of the Native American Marriage Tales unit. Story source: Tales of the North American Indians by Stith Thompson (1929).

The Girl and the Turkeys:

Using a couple of main ideas from this story I would have a tribe that was very rich and enjoyed all the luxuries that nature and life had to offer them, but unlike others, as long as they had more money and fortune than everyone else then one of their sons and daughters had to marry animals. Of course, there was no reproducing with an animal and a human, it was just a pure marriage and the human would take care of the animal as a pet. But they could be married to another human. It was a sign of good luck, but the rich tribe didn't feel like this was something the rich would be forced to do by the sky, clouds and sun above them that ruled over them. Well one day, one of the daughters was set to marry a cow, but was not happy about it. She didn't understand why she must marry a cow. So she talked to the clouds. The clouds answered back to her in a way no one else could have understood. The next day, when she was set to marry the cow, as the entire tribe was gathered, instead of getting married she removed herself from the tribe and told them she didn't want to be rich anymore. That she would rather be poor and more unfortunate than marry a cow. She realized that having money wasn't what life was about and wasn't worth sacrificing a good, meaningful life with other people. Having to marry an animals was absurd. 

Source: The Huffington Post

Famous Last Words: Spring Break Blues

I have a major case of senioritis hitting in. It probably doesn't help that I have a white board that I update everyday with a countdown until graduation. That being said, my focus coming back from Spring Break has not been good. This week I have put my health first, ha, and that has caused me to get at least 8 hours of sleep and eat right. But there are other things that have been sacrificed. Such as doing homework. I feel I am behind in this class. I should just pick a time to sit down and has out this entire class so I don't have to worry about it as much. It's an interesting class, but time consuming during the week. But anyway, I read Native American fairy tales this week. They were very interesting. I'm not sure I liked them very much. I found it hard to think of ways to write my own story simply because I didn't find myself meshing with any of the stories that I read from the fairy tales. I did my best writing at work this week with the kiddos that I work with. Sometimes it's nice just to write for people who don't have an advance vocabulary. I read an awesome story this week for this class about a war dog. I love dogs. But this author wrote in first person as the dog, and it just really tugged at my heart strings. The author did a great job. It was a great idea. Outside of school, I attended the Made in Oklahoma showcase event put on by OU Housing & Food. It was a great event, a little windy, but that didn't stop me from eating some chocolate covered bacon with jalapeños on top. It was yummy. This Sunday/Monday I will be attending the Rokerthon event. I will probably be dead after work by 6 p.m., but I'm excited for it. 

Source: Inkling News

Review: Life Advice

Life. Here is some life advice: Every morning we wake up is the first day of the rest of our life.

This post is from Saturday, March 24 announcements. 

This was my favorite part from announcements because I really need this kind of motivation every day I wake up. As a senior, I'm trying to figure out what my next steps are in this crazy thing called life. I try my hardest to not compare myself to others every single day, those with jobs, those with internships, but I know that I will find my way eventually. It takes hard work and effort, and I can do it. SO this piece of advice really struck a cord with me. I must must must must wake up every morning and be glad I'm alive and strive to be better than the me I was yesterday. 

Reading Notes, American Indian Fairy Tales, Part A

American Indian Fairy Tales

Notes, Part A

Shin-ge-bis Fools the North Wind

I would write a story about how the winds were brothers and they would laugh and cry and fight, and when that would happen, it would control the weather due to the brothers being different winds. Well one day they get in a huge fight and it causes a storm bigger than any other the tribe and its fishermen have seen. So the storm raged on and on. After a week, the people didn't know what to do. So they prayed to the winds and instead of a rain dance, they did a wind dance. The brothers still didn't care that the people were being affected. They cared more that each of them weren't going to give in then they did about helping the people. So the people decided to rebuild their village to fit the harsh winds and storms that continued to come. Then the brothers finally saw the damage they were causing, and decided to stop the fight for the good of the people. The people did one last wind dance, and the winds and storms finally stopped. They were so happy.


The Little Boy and Girl in the Cloud

I would make the fire tell the stories. Through the storyteller, though. I would write about how the people would build a fire for storytime, and once the flame was big enough a story would appear from the fire and be told through the storyteller. Or I could write about how the native peoples used clouds to tell stories and at the end of each story would predict something about the next day. But to get the clouds to tell a story, the native peoples must correctly chant toward them and request a story.

Butterflies. Source: PBS


This story is part of the American Indian Fairy Tales unit. Story source: American Indian Fairy Tales by W.T. Larned, with illustrations by John Rae (1921).

Week 8 Growth Mindset

My strengths related to growth mindset: 

- Taking a long-term view than taking a short-term view

- Finding motivation inside myself rather than looking for praise and other rewards (I do this in other areas other than class.)

- Being willing to try new things rather than staying in my comfort zone

- Setting my own goals rather than letting other people make choices for me (I ask for advice, but I normally make an informed decision on my own. If I can't, I reevaluate if what I'm doing is something I should truly be doing.)

- Being confident that I can improve rather than thinking I'm not good enough (No one can every get better if you have the "Not good enough" outlook

- Setting my own schedule rather than doing things last minute (I do classwork last minute, but I don't do organizational and non-class related things last minute because most of the time they are incredibly important and related to my reputation and my work ethic.)

- Being open to any and all feedback rather than wanting only positive feedback (You can't grow this way)

- Asking lots of questions

My weaknesses related to growth mindset:

- In classes, I do the minimum, but I do it correctly. 

- I focus on grades, because that's what I've been taught you must do to succeed. At this point in my life, I just want to graduate but I have set high standards for myself, so even though I say I don't care, I always try to do my best. 

- Choosing what's easy (This depends on what it's related to. Class? I choose easy. Organization? I choose the best. Anything related to a job or internship? Choose the best.)

- Doing things last minute (class-related things that I know I can get done)

- Being a perfectionist (I can't change this quickly. I am a perfectionist, and I'm constantly working on it.)

Source: Frabz.com

- Feeling defensive about mistakes (This goes along with being a perfectionist)

I will work on my weaknesses, but honestly I just want to get a job and graduate. 

Week 8 Reflections

1) READING. 

I believe that all my reading choices have been good choices. I enjoy every story I read, except for a snake one. The reading I enjoyed the most was from the Asia unit titled, The Favorite of Fortune and the Child of Ill Luck.

(Twin Dragons, Source: Luck)

I usually do my reading before I go to bed on a Tuesday night. It helps me to focus better and it's more like a nighttime, reading-for-pleasure more than for homework time. I also am able to sleep on my ideas that pop into my head. 

At first my reading notes weren't helpful, because I was taking ideas from a couple of lines and thinking about ways I could change it for a story I created. But now when I take notes, I tend to make up a story on the spot and then go with it as long as my imagination will take me. So I usually take those notes and expand for the story post that week. 

2) WRITING. 

I am very happy with all the stories I've written. I've learned that I'm a fast writer when it comes to writing fiction. Being a journalism major, I wrote only nonfiction stories. But thus far, I've really enjoyed going back to creating stories in my head and typing out whatever comes to mind. I find it more entertaining and fulfilling. 

Looking ahead, I don't see any storytelling experiments that I would necessarily want to try. As for writing skills, I think I just want to be able to write in different styles and make it entertaining for the reader.

3) CONNECTING.
When I look at other people's stories, I admire the details. Again, with my background in journalism and nonfiction writing, I have lost my creative mind, in my opinion. I don't feel like I have gotten back into touch with a way to create vivid details. I could do it with nonfiction/journalism, but it took a while to master that because I had to create vivid words (not details) using the actual details the source had given me. So there wasn't much leeway given to me. So I truly enjoy seeing the creativity of the students and hopefully I can force my brain into letting it be more creative. The only thing I will always try to avoid in stories is grammatical errors. Not typos. Grammatical errors. I hate them. Also, I don't consider passive voice to be a grammatical errors, but some might. Feedback has been good. I enjoy getting feedback more than I enjoy giving it in this class. I think if I was editing for a publication, I might enjoy it more, but I hate to edit a story online only and not being able to edit pen to paper. That's how I edit best. In the latter half of the semester, I think I can give better feedback by just staying focused on each story I read. 

Famous Last Words: Make it to Spring Break

My reading for the week went well. I wasn't so interested in the Filipino stories from this week because all them were detailed up until the end; the end always had a happy, abrupt ending in my opinion. I don't think this is the way life works most of the time. Also these aren't fairy tales, so I don't necessarily see why they all must end happily. But for my story, I framed it similarly, with a happy ending. I didn't have time to both portions of the reading, but that's normal for my schedule. I do reading A and then the extra credit to make up the reading. I tend to find inspiration for my weekly story through the first set of reading.
I do my best writing when I am focused and determined. At this point in the semester and in my life, my best writing is on cover letters and application essays. In all honesty, that's where my focus and best writing should be. I need a job!
One of the blogs I read this week had a wonderful introduction paragraph. In addition, the whole story was mysterious and interesting throughout. I really thought this person was a great writer.
Things are fine in my other classes. I'm just trying to work ahead because I have a lot of organizational/leadership obligations this week. I'm just ready for spring break. I'm going to Galveston, Texas, with a group of my closest girlfriends. I need a mental break. 

Beach at Galveston, Texas. Source: RoyalCarribean

I hope to keep up with this class. Some weeks, I wish I had worked ahead, and other weeks, it's fine. I enjoy writing the stories, but I don't always enjoy reading the stories and taking notes. I work better trying to understand the overall picture of stories and rethinking ideas that way. But my capstone class is the most important class to me, and I hope to do well in it. The goal is to graduate!

Review: Focus, venn diagram

I enjoyed the venn diagram from Saturday, March 4 announcements. I think I relate to this because of where I am in my life. I'm about to graduate and I'm trying to search for jobs that I qualify for but also think I will enjoy. It's nerve-racking. I'm a control freak in many ways, so even if something doesn't truly matter that much, I try to control it anyways. I'm always known to be bossy and take control of situations, in a good way, most of the time. But I should do better, as the venn diagram shows, to try to control the things that I can that matter. I love this diagram.

Source: What You Should Focus On

Week 7 Storytelling: Sisters Unite

Three women shopping together. Source: Hercampus.com

Once there were three young girls: Ella, Kate, and Lee. They were from a rich family. Their dad was a lawyer, and their mom was the district attorney. Not only were they rich, but their parents didn't spend a lot of time with them due to their jobs. So at age sixteen, they were all very used to doing whatever they wanted and whenever they wanted. Unfortunately, they weren't intelligent. They went to school but spent most of the hours on their phones, never paying much attention to the teachers. The only special thing about the sisters was that each had her own special talent.

Ella could charm her way out of any situation, good or bad.

Kate could calm anyone down or make anyone immediately happy.

As for Lee, she could enter and leave a room without ever being seen or heard, just due to her quiet nature.

It was Christmas Eve, and the girls were at the mall doing last minute shopping for Christmas — not for others, but for themselves. The more presents, the merrier was their thinking. The girls weren't about giving; they were all about receiving. As they left one store, they passed by the Santa Claus doing pictures with the children. Suddenly, there were screams.

A mother shouted out, "He's taken my baby!"

The sisters looked around to see what was going on. Ella turned just far enough to her left to see a quick flash of a person in a hoodie running around the corner past the pretzel shop.

The sisters looked at each other as if to ask, "Should we help?"

Ella didn't really feel like helping.

Kate thought the mother might benefit from her gift of being able to calm anyone down or make anyone immediately happy, but she still didn't see what she would get out of it.

Lee didn't see what she had to offer with her gift of entering and leaving a room unsuspected. The vote was two to one to help after a mild staring contest among the three of them. The three rich sisters decided to use their powers for good.

Kate went over to the mother to console her. She asked the mother what had happened. As the mother began to shriek while retelling the story, Kate placed her hands on the mother's shoulders. The mother immediately stopped shrieking. She sat down and started from the beginning of the story in a calm but concerned manner.

Lee and Ella were brave to go after the kidnapper. Lee was able to catch up to the kidnapper without being heard. After making sure the kidnapper had no weapons, she cornered him so that Ella could catch up. Lee's job was done.

Then Ella finally caught up. She used her gift to sweet talk the kidnapper into setting the child down for a moment. When he set the child down, Lee quietly picked the child up and walked away. By that time, the mall cops were nearing, and so Ella continued talking to the kidnapper to keep him distracted.

Meanwhile, Lee returned the child to the mother. The mother was, of course, ecstatic. The mother asked how old the sisters were. They said they were sixteen. The mother couldn't believe they were so young and so generous to help a mother in need.

The mother thanked them profusely, and Santa Claus even wanted a picture with them.

The sisters from then on found that using their powers to help others was much more fulfilling then using them to manipulate people to get what they wanted.

Author's Note:
This story is loosely based off Filipino Tales: Three Brothers of Fortune. The three brothers each have an item to help them in their time of need. Each of the brothers comes together during a bad time to help save the day. They unite by using all their gifts as a solution. Just like the brothers, I wrote a story about three sisters who have innate gifts who use them to help others instead of manipulate people to get what they want out of life. I based this story loosely off the movie Mean Girls, where the girls are simply involved with themselves and like to shop a lot. Except, in my story, the girls use their powers for good. But I wanted to write a story with a good ending and also a lesson to takeaway. In addition, I based this story loosely off Paul Blart: Mall Cop, since I've always enjoyed watching that funny movie. Lastly, I based the story during Christmastime, because not only is that my favorite holiday, but it is the holiday that I think most people associate good acts with. Christmastime is a time where people come together and help each other, and I think it's the most beautiful time of the year.

Bibliography:

Filipino Tales: Three Brothers of Fortune. This story is part of the Filipino Tales unit. Story source: Filipino Popular Tales by Dean S. Fansler (1921).