Week 15 Story

The Deer

There once was a family of deer who lived deep in the forest. They were a large family and had lived in this forest for a long time. They started to notice farmers moving into their forest. The deer saw the farmers as invaders. The farmers were taking up land that the deer would forage in and started to destroy the forest.
The family of deer tried to avoid the farmers as much as possible. However, a time came when they were running out of food. The youngest deer in the family told his parents that it is time for him to venture out and support their family. The parents were older now and could not provide as much as they used to be able to. They agreed to let the youngest deer leave. The parents were worried because the youngest deer was unique. He didn't have the traditional coloring that all the other members of the family had. The youngest had a white coat with ash spots. All his family were traditional in coloring, they had a light brown coat with white spots. Regardless of the worry the parents had, they let the youngest deer go.

The foragers had little success finding food for the rest of the group. The young deer decided to go further and look around the farmer's field. He found so much food! More than they have seen in months. So the young one got the rest of the foragers and they ate what they could. Then they took food back to the rest of the family.

Silhouette of a deer

What they didn't know is that the farmer saw the deer take his food. He also saw the young white deer and wanted to capture it. He decided to lay out a trap and wait until they came again.
The young deer was so excited to have a successful forage that he couldn't wait to go again. The parents were grateful to have their son provide for them.
The next day came, the foragers went out again to the farm. To the farmer's plan the young deer got caught in the trap. The others ran away in fear, leaving the young one behind. The farmer came to the beautiful white deer and was in awe of his unique color.
The farmer asked, "Why are you stealing my food?"
The deer was shaking with fear, but got the courage to speak, "You stole our foraging grounds. I am just here to provide for my family. Please let me go back to my family."
The farmer felt for the deer. He too was providing for his family. He decided to make a deal with the deer. "You can come here and eat from the far fields so that you and your family will not have to fear being hungry."
And so, the family of deer and the farmer coexisted for a long time. The deer didn't have to worry about food and the farmer got to watch the beautiful deer come to the farm to eat. They lived a happy life.


Author's Note- I took inspiration from The Young Parrot, which is a Jataka Tale. The original story was about a beautiful parrot who provided for his parents. The parrot got caught by the person who he was taking food from. The person let the parrot go as long as he came back to take food from the person. They struck this deal because the person wanted to see the beauty of the parrot. I switched the parrot to a deer. However, I kept a similar theme, "Help your parent's in their old age."

The young parrot
Twenty Jātaka tales, retold by Noor Inayat

Reading notes week 15: The Forest Fire

The Forest Fire

Twenty Jātaka tales, retold by Noor Inayat

There was a family of quails
The mother and father fed the babies
First 6 ate well
The 7th didn't eat well.
The 7th didn't develop strong wings
A fire started in the forrest
The family all flew away and left the 7th
the 7th stood up to the fire and it died.

Quail family 

Reading Notes Week 15: Young Parrrot

Thr young parrot young parrot

Twenty Jātaka tales, retold by Noor Inayat

There once was a parrot more beautiful than any others
When he was old enough, he'd go get rice for his family
The farmer of the field wanted to see the bird
He decided to trap the bird and was successful
He let the bird go because he was helping his parents.

A parrot

Tech Tip: Canvas Mobile App

Canvas

I have had the app on my phone for about 3 years. It has been an okay experience. My brother is going to be a student at OUin the fall so i decided to save the video for him so that he can learn how to navigate the app when he gets to OU. I personally use it on my iPhone. I also use canvas on my desktop for all my major work. I often revert to my desktop because I just prefer the bigger screen. 

Canvas Logo

In the dry hot desert there lived a great elephant. He lived in an oasis that was the only place of refuge for all life in the fiery heat of the desert. He was lovable and kind. No one ever had anything bad to say about this grand elephant. He was always happy and jolly. He was often seen singing and swaying to his own tunes. The other animals were always mesmerized by his grandness.

One day the grand elephant was singing through the oasis and snacking on fallen fruit. Then he heard, with his mighty ears, a cry. "This can't be the cry of an animal here. It sounds like the cry of a human." The great elephant took off running in the direction of the cries. The other animals have never seen the elephant run with such ferocity. The elephant could tell form the cries that these people needed his help.

After running for awhile the elephant came across the people producing the cries. It was a group of men who looked tired and weary. "Why are you in the middle of this desert?" exclaimed the elephant. The leader of the group gathered as much strength as he could to explain, "We have been exiled by our king for practicing our faith that was different than his."

An image of a grand elephant 

The great elephant was overwhelmed with sadness and heartbreak. For the first time in his life the elephant's eyes welled with tears. The group of people were composed of men, women, and children. There were babies and elders. They all could not make it another day without water or food. The elephant felt for these people. He came up with a plan. "There is a hill in the distance, about 100 yards from where you are. Take the strongest people in this group and go to that hill. There is a body of an elephant there that you can eat and nearby there is a stream with water. Go there and re-energize yourself. Then carry the rest of your people to the food and water. After you feel strong enough to travel again head east and you will see a small town where you can seek refuge." The people had no options so they listened to the elephant.

The elephant took off in an opposite direction so that the group would not see him. Then he turned around and went towards the hill that he told the people about. He ran up the hill with great speed. When he reached the top the elephant jumped off the hill. He fell to his death. The elephant sacrificed himself so that the group could live.

The group came to the hill and saw that it was their kind great elephant who was at the bottom of the hill. The group could not come to eat this elephant. However, one individual said that the sacrifice of the elephant can not be in vain. The group followed the direction of the great elephant. They gained some strength and headed east. They went to the town and got settled. These people never stopped telling the story of the great elephant and his ultimate sacrifice.


Author's Note-
I liked retelling children's stories. So I retold the Great Elephant and just added more detail. I kept most of the original story. The elephant was known for being happy and lived in an oasis. He was a hermit. He did make a sacrifice for the group.
I just added more detail to the story.


The Great Elephant


Twenty Jātaka tales, retold by Noor Inayat

Reading notes Twenty Jataka Tales

The Great Elephant


Twenty Jātaka tales, retold by Noor Inayat


Hermit elephant
Lots of imagery
lives in the desert
hear the voices of unhappy men
The elephant followed the voices
found a group of men at deaths door
for the first time in his happy life his eyes filled with tears
The elephant asked who they were
the men were banished by their king
there was 100 but perished on the way.
men begged for food and water
the elephant told them to go toeards a hill where they will find an elephant to eat and water nearby.
the elephant ran off with great speed.
the elephant went to the hill and jumped to his end
the men arrived to see it was their friend the elephant who was dead before them.

Beautiful elephant

The Guilty Dogs: Twenty Jataka Tales Reading A

Twenty Jataka Tales

king and chariot
6 white horses
chariot destroyed by palace dogs
The king was angry
"kill them all" even in the city

palace dog

Twenty Jātaka tales, retold by Noor Inayat