There have always been stories about the origin of the land and the life that calls it home. Before there was science, those stories came from imagination and spirituality. In this series, I have created contemporary nature photography to illustrate them. Read more about my Legends of the Land series.
You don’t usually see the moon during the day, but that is not because he isn’t working hard. Once the moon almost lost his life because he tried to do more than he was able. He couldn’t tell anyone “no.”
Everyone adored the moon. After all, just his presence could light up the night sky.
The moon had a gorgeous wife and a beautiful house. Soon creatures from the forest were showing up at his doorstep wanting him to take them in as pets.
First, there was a mountain lion. And because it was now a pet, he had to feed it. That day, the moon had to catch two deer — one for him and his wife, one for the new pet.
As word spread of the moon’s generosity, more animals show up at his doorstep. There were a few more mountain lions. A bear. Even rattlesnakes.
The moon had to hide all day and hunt to try to feed them all. One day, he caught 10 deer, one for each of his pets. But the animals weren’t happy with only one deer each and they turned on the moon, attacking him.
Blood spilled from his body. His bright white face was obscured by blood, appearing deep, dark red.
As he climbed high in the sky to escape, his wife saw his injuries and rushed to his side. She collected his blood, stitched his wounds and nursed him back to health, restoring his glow.
Every so often, the moon forgets about that violent night. His nurturing spirit welcomes more and more pets into his home. But when he can’t satisfy their ravenous hunger, this story repeats, resulting in another “blood moon.”
— Based on a Hupa legend
(Fine-art, signed prints of Lunar Eclipse over Mount Rainier are now available at LivingWilderness.com. To get first word of new images from Kevin Ebi, follow his photography on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram .)
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