Dayle L. Brown
The starry night sky has always filled us with wonder. Down through the ages we have looked to the skies and have seen images of our heroes, gods, and monsters. Storytellers have illustrated their mythologies and legends with it, passing on to future generations the customs of their people. Many of these stories have survived to the present.
In this Skylore from Planet Earth we explore some of the stories about the star cluster PLEIADES. Since The Pleiades is located almost directly over the earth’s equator, people from the entire planet have looked to it for a reminder of their own traditions. Fifteen richly illustrated stories take the reader on a trip around the world, giving a glimpse into the histories and cultures of the planet’s early civilizations.
Six books in this series will feature other sky phenomena as seen from early cultures around the world. Read stories about the constellation ORION (available now), the planet VENUS, our MILKY WAY GALAXY, the SUN, and the MOON.
During her over thirty years of teaching, Dayle Brown specialized in planetarium education, finding that a planetarium is the perfect classroom for teaching astronomy related subjects. She discovered that storytelling becomes even more magical while gazing up at a starry sky. Storytelling is a wonderful way to introduce children to past and present cultures of the world.
In 1993 and 1994 Ms. Brown served as co-director of NSF Leadership Institutes in astronomy and space science, and in 2001 was a writer for Indiana Science Curriculum Frameworks Document.
As the owner/director of Pegasus Productions, Ms. Brown provides astronomy related presentations to schools and the public. She presents papers and workshops on planetarium education and storytelling under the stars at professional conferences.
Ms. Brown left the classroom to continue her work as a planetarium educator and to pursue her love of art. Her watercolor paintings have shown in area museums and galleries.
Ms. Brown lives with her husband, David Piser, in Mishawaka, IN. They enjoy traveling together and spending time with their children and grandchildren.
“Tale of Yawira & the Opossum”
(Barasana Tribe, Columbia)
The Tale of Yawira and the Opossum is told by the Barasana people of southeast Columbia. They life in the region of the Rio Pira-Parana, near the border with Brazil.
Beautiful Yawira was known as the Mother of the Sky. She fell in love with Tinamou Chief. The tinamou is a ground bird that is associated with the sun because of its yellow feathers. Yawira and Tinamou planned a meeting. She was to take the trail marked with the yellow tail feathers of the japu bird, not the one marked by the blue feathers of the macaw.
Opossum overheard the plan. He wanted Yawira for himself and so scurried ahead to switch the feathers so that the yellow tail feathers of the japu marked the way to his own home. Yawira was tricked. She stayed with Opossum for a while, but wasn’t happy.
One day, while bathing in the stream, Yawira saw Tinamou Chief. She swam downstream to him, but Opossum followed. Tinamou and Opossum argued and fought for Yawira. Tinamou Chief won and Opossum was killed.
Just as opossum had predicted, at the moment of his death a heavy rain started and continued for a long time.
* * * * * * *
Opossum is represented in the summer sky of the Southern Hemisphere by the Pleiades. The appearance of the Pleiades in the night sky marks the beginning of a long dry season. Opossum lives!
When Opossum dies and the Pleiades disappear from the night sky in May, the long rainy winter season begins.
