In this story there are several mentions of things that have to do with the number 4. Like the four Navaho gods or four calls as the gods came closer. Apparently ears of corn and feathers are important in the creation of man and women. I don’t get the general idea of this story though.

I wonder where the origins of the Mirage people came from?

I really liked the imagery in this story, and how the idea of something so small can turn out extraordinary.

Mirage (Noun) – an optical illusion caused by atmospheric conditions, especially the appearance of a sheet of water in a desert or on a hot road caused by the refraction of light from the sky by heated air.

I knew before what this word meant, but its a word that you don’t hear often in everyday life, so I thought it was important to show it’s literal definition in order to see how it is being used within the text.

Brushwood (Noun) – undergrowth, twigs, and small branches, typically used for firewood or kindling.

I didn’t know what “brushwood” was, as for I don’t think I’ve seen it used in any other stories we’ve read.

Ablution: to wash oneself for a ceremonial purpose.

Brushwood: twigs, or small branches.

Where did yellow spirit go? Was he important at all to the creation of humans? And it talks about people in the story. Why would they make more people? Were the people in the beginning a different type of people?

I think that this idea of how people came into the world is very imaginative and creative. It is a fun take on the subject.

My opinion of this writing style is that it is a little confusing and, I guess you could call it, stuffy. I think that the writer needed to compose his thoughts in a more organized way. I did enjoy the overall idea of the passage, though.

Some of the customs that are explained are the customs of bathing, such as what to dry oneself with after bathing. Also, the customs of how to announce the arrival of gods or people of high importance is explained.

The wind represents our breath.

There were no actual animals in the text, but animals were mentioned in the text. The people were using feathers from eagles. This was mentioned because it shows that there was a close relationship between these people (and also people in general) and animals.

Where is the Yellow Body while the others were creating the man and woman?

Do the people only wash themselves on the twelfth day?

Ablution means to wash ones self. In the story it means washing themselves.

It makes sense that wind is portrayed as life because wind is very lively.

Personified means to represent a human figure. In the story it means the people.

Questions: Why did the people dry themselves with cornmeal? If the people created from corn and wind were the first people, who were the people the story referenced multiple times?
Opinions: The story definitely adds an interesting image for how people were created. The story could explain the trend with the colors white and yellow a little better.
Word Meanings: Mirage – an image or illusion often related to the heat.
buckskin – the hide of a deer, more specifically, the hide of a male deer.
Associations/Inferences: The wind represents the breaths that we breathe.

They like to describe things with color. The Navaho gods were different colors and the corn had colors.

I like how the gods each played a part in the creation of people.

Protruded means to extend beyond or above a surface.

Brushwood means wood with small branches. It was used to describe the wood that was brought by the people.

I think the things that represent the culture is wind, crops and animals. When the wind came it gave life to the man and woman. There was corn in the story that was part of the creation of man. Also, eagle feathers were part of the creation of man.

Throughout the story we learn many different gods or things used to help create new life. Wind can be a way of refreshment and understanding geography, maybe if you were one of the first tribes? Animals are relativity close to us scientifically showing that our bodies come from them. This probably puts a perspective to understand the Native Morals and beliefs on different animals.

Humans are to be prized, and gods are to be even more honored.

I believe the main value portrayed in this story is the preciousness of life and the work that is put into creating life.

The people wash and hear the gods coming. The gods lay objects on the ground, the Mirage people walk around it, and the wind blows through. In place of the objects is the first man and woman.

This passage is about the creation of the first(?) man and woman.

This passage is about the understanding of creation from Native Tribe stories on how man and woman were created. Showing how everything in the story was involved and still is important to most tribes today.

Many themes can be taken from this story. But in my opinion, this passage is telling a myth about the creation of man, and how we stem from the simplest elements on earth to the greatest collective of earth.

This passage is about how the first humans were created.

Here is my paraphrase:
Every twelfth day, the people bathed. On that day, gods came to the people. They laid down two buckskins — one on top of the other, and in between, they laid two ears of corn. One ear was white, and under this, the gods laid a white eagle’s feather; the other ear was yellow, and under this, the gods laid a yellow eagle’s feather. The wind blew upon the items, and some of the Mirage People walked around them. After awhile, the top buckskin was removed, and the people found a male and a female. The male had replaced the white ear of corn, and the female had replaced the yellow ear of corn. The people built a structure for the male and female, who were the first male and the first female, and the gods blessed them.

This passage is about how four Navaho gods put some things together to create people. They put the things together, let the wind envelope them and suddenly there were people.

This passage is about the four gods coming together, working together, and using their own individual resources to create man and woman.

The gods came and put objects onto the floor. The people walked around it and when the wind came it gave life to two people.

Overall, I believe the strongest value displayed here is working in groups. The magic of teamwork between the gods made the creation of a man and woman possible, though only if everyone did their part.

I think that the values that this illustrates are present in the culture are:

1. People of high importance or gods are to be greatly honored.
2. Humans are very precious and are to be treated as such.
3. Bathing is an important practice and should be done thoroughly.

I think one of the values illustrated is making sure you appreciate things like wind and corn and the little things.

I think teamwork was one of the most emphasized values in the story, because it tells a tale of the four different gods coming together to create man and woman.

I think the values are the importance of wind in their culture and working together like the gods did.