Tale of the Rainbow Crow

The Rainbow Crow- An Old Lenni Lenape Legend

Once upon a time in the ancient past the snow spirit came to Earth for the first time. She glanced upon the all of the land and sent winter into action. Many of the animals were delighted to see this snow but as the days went past and the snow piled up the animals regretted loving the snow. Food became scarce. Finally the animals thought they had enough. 

All of them gathered in the center of the forest to have a meeting. The leader was bear. He said that one of the animals should go up to the heavens to talk to the creator. There they would tell him the snow was to deep for comfort and that they wanted spring back. The first one to volunteer was wolf. He said that since he was faster then anybody he could be the one to talk to the creator. But Bear disagreed because the everyone knew the creator was above them all living in a beautiful sky palace.

 The next one to volunteer was the Eagle. He boasted about his bravery and his strength but Bear still shook his head. He did have all of the proper qualities except that his voice was the best of them all. 

Soon Owl volunteered. She was the best night flier and she was quiet but too quiet. The creator would never listen to her. 

Finally Rainbow Crow gazed at bear and told him that since she had a beautiful voice. In addition she also had beautiful colors on his feathers. All of the animals agreed. Even Bear. Rainbow Crow flew all the way to the palace for days and nights. When she finally arrive the Creator was too busy. Crow never really cared. She had a plan up her sleeve. She sang with beauty and elegance. When she was done the Creator looked at her and told her that they had never heard such beauty. For that song the Creator gave her a chance to do any wish she wanted. 

Crow told him that the snow was too powerful for all of us and that food would be scarce. The creator said that he couldn't just bring Spring immediately. But there was a harder way. The creator grabbed a stick and mad fire on it. It was a torch! That way Crow could bring it down to the Earth and burn the snow away. 

While he was flying down the torch got on his feathers and he was on fire. He was kinda like a Phoenix. When he was all the way his friends had already set up the branches to make the forest fire melt the snow. But the fire burned Crow's throat and he turned the color black. The creator told Crow of all the good things of losing those qualities. Since he couldn't sing he wouldn't be taken and put in a cage to sing or since his meat was rotten he walnut be eaten and finally the creator gave Rainbow Crow his colors back.