The Singing Scoutmaster: Creation of the Original People, The

When the Earth was young, she lived among a family in the sky. There was the Moon, known as Grandmother, who lit the night, and the Sun, called Grandfather, who warmed the day. The Earth herself was a woman—Mother Earth—because from her came all living things. She was filled with life and beauty, and she was given four sacred directions: East, South, West, and North. Each direction was blessed with its own physical and spiritual powers, guiding the balance of the world.

In those early days, the Creator, whom the Ojibwe people call Gichi-Manidoo, looked down upon Mother Earth and decided to fill her with wonders. He sent singers in the form of birds to fill the skies with music. He sent swimmers to the rivers and lakes, and placed plants, trees, insects, and crawlers on the land. The four-legged animals soon followed, roaming the forests and plains, each given a role and purpose to maintain the harmony of life.

But something was still missing. Mother Earth needed someone to care for her, to walk her surface with respect and wisdom. So, Gichi-Manidoo took the sacred *megis* shell and blew his breath into the four corners of the world. As his breath mixed with the spirit of the East, South, West, and North, a new being took shape—man, the two-legged. He was the last form of life to be placed on the Earth, born from the union of Gichi-Manidoo's breath and the spirit of the four directions.

From this original man, the Anishinaabe, or the Original People, were born. They were blessed by Gichi-Manidoo with the gifts of intelligence, creativity, and spirit, meant to walk in balance with Mother Earth and all her children. The Anishinaabe were given the role of caretakers, responsible for respecting the life that surrounded them and the spirits that guided them.

And so, man became part of the great family of the Earth. As the sun shone down and the moon lit the night, the Anishinaabe people walked upon Mother Earth, honoring the gifts of the four directions and remembering that they were the last to be created. They were the children of the Earth and the sky, and they carried with them the breath of the Creator.