What is Your Favorite Folklore?
@Angelwhispers (8978)
United States
March 26, 2008 3:39pm CST
Emily just went to the bedroom to take a nap, and I was reading from a folklore book, a story that actually I had to rearrange some of the words, and lesson the reality of the harsh images that it was leaving in my mind, not to mention I know a 4 year old can not grasp the the concepts, nor for that matter do I want her to. (NOTE TO SELF, PROOF READ STORIES NANA BEFORE THE ACTUALLY READING OUT LOUD!)
At any rate, I finished the story after she laid down and it touched my heart, I have always had a fondness for folklore, here is a real condensed version of the story I just read.
The legend begins with the panda as a totally white bear. One day a little girl happened to run across a white panda and a leopard fighting. Trying to save the defenseless panda she charged the leopard with a large bamboo shoot, striking him over and over again. The leopard was not hurt by the bamboo and turned on the little girl instead. This act of bravery saved the panda’s life but the little girl lost hers in the struggle.
All the white pandas held a funeral in honor of the brave little girl and wore black armbands as a sign of mourning. The black dye of the armbands, moistened by many tears from the pandas, began to run. When the pandas wiped their eyes, the armband left black marks. When the pandas consoled each other by hugging, the dye left black spots on their backs. When they covered their ears to block out the sound of crying, the black dye colored their ears.
Do you have any favorite folk lore tales that you think about or maybe touched your heart? Maybe it moved you in other ways?
Want to find one and share it with us? LMAO Pretend its your new found fav..... LMAO just share something:)))
2 people like this
7 responses
@fenrirwing (31)
• United States
27 Mar 08
I;m not sure if this is a folklore but i love books like inkspell and icemark.
@tinkerick (1257)
• United States
26 Mar 08
Thanks for sharing the story! I love folklore like that. 2 of my favorite fairy tale books are simply called "The Blue Book of Fairytales" and "The Yellow Book of Fairytales" and they contain most of the tales we are familiar with, however, instead of the happy ever after endings, they have very medieval type endings where the villain or evil stepmom is torn between quarter horses, or tossed in a pit of vipers, etc. I wouldn't read this to a toddler, but I do let my pre-teen girls read them. I find it very interesting that fairytales have their roots in very violent times.
One of my favs is East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon. (i think that's the right order, I'm not at home to check the book) It's written in the Old English type accent and there have been many versions of it rewritten out there. Including one book my daughter just read for school "East".
1 person likes this
@Angelwhispers (8978)
• United States
26 Mar 08
Oh yes I am familiar with the fairy tale roots. Such dark sinister worlds and I have several of those, but I dug this one out the other night and I read her a light hearted tale of a tiger, so I thought how scary can theses be...LMAO Nana will pre read before the next story.... I loved the white panda and Angel however.
I shall have to look yours up.
@filmbuff (2909)
• United States
27 Mar 08
I don't have a specific story in mind that touched me in anyway, but I was am particulary fond of the Grimm's Fairytale's stories. But they really are grim, and not always the most suitable for children. If you want to give them a good read, Barnes and Noble sells a condensed book fo Grimm's Fairytale's for like eight or nine dollars.
@Angelwhispers (8978)
• United States
27 Mar 08
I adore the Grimm's fairytale's Filmbuff, and you are so right it is not the kind of nap time or other time reading for children. Shucks they still give me chills. We have all the normal Princess tales, you know Disney Princesses :)) but I would like something else and that is why I picked up the folklore book.
1 person likes this
@Angelwhispers (8978)
• United States
27 Mar 08
Thanks for that suggestion Filmbuff... She has such an active imagination, she and I are always playing peter pan ... I am hook LMAO I know she would enjoy more off the beaten path stories... heck maybe we might find another character to play other then Hook and Wendy, with our Peter an invisible friend.
1 person likes this
@novataylor (6570)
• United States
30 Mar 08
Wow, I love that story, Angel, it had me tearing up. The first thing that I think of here is The Headless Horseman, and then, oddly enough, I keep thinking of Old Yeller, which really makes no sense, except that it made me cry, and after tearing up over the panda story, maybe that's what brought it to mind. But folklore, folklore, hmmmm. Don't suppose the Princess and the Pea would count, would it? Camelot? How about poor sweet Holmes and his nemesis Moriarity? Did you ever see the movie 'They Might Be Giants' with George C. Scott as Holmes and Joanne Woodward as Dr. Watson, but a psychiatrist? Omg, quirky to the max, but wonderful, emotional, powerful, and when they finally come face to face with Moriarity, oh my, it's devastating, really. It's an old one, probably done in the seventies, early seventies maybe, but well worth seeing. Sorry to digress so much, but you know me, and I've gone off on another tangent! Maybe I'm hung up on the word folklore, I just don't know.
@Angelwhispers (8978)
• United States
2 Apr 08
Nova, wasn't that just the sweetest story. Oh The folklore of Camelot:))) So with drama, romance, tears heartbreak, and blood shed. What possibly can be better? My husband is a King Arther buff. He use to read anything written about the knights of the round table.
I don't think I have seen the movie 'They Might Be Giants' but I like George C Scott very much. My mother was a fan. By the way Sister I do so love it when you digress and take me with you on a wild tangent. The adventures we have together when you do is exciting and arousing. Keep me roused my sweet :)))
@posham (1236)
• Philippines
27 Mar 08
there once was a glorious kingdom with the wisest of kings... then, a witch appeared envious and plotted to ruin the kingdom and th people's faith in the monarch... she poisoned the well where all the people drink in order to make every single one of them crazy... the next morning when the king and queen went to the village to check the people out, al of them were out of their minds..
Meanwhile, as the people listen to their king as what appears to them as talking gibberish... they all thought that the king was going mad and that they refuse to be lead by a crazy king... they started rebellions and coups to dethrone the king from then on..
one night, the frightened queen suggested to the wise king to drink from the common well so that they will be like everyone else... the royal family drank from the common well and became crazy themselves..
the next morning, the king went to speak in gibberish before everyone else... the crowd repented on why they were trying to bring down such a wise and noble king!
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hehehe.. i forgot the actual words so i've rewritten the story instead.,,, but that's the sam sequence of the story and same story...,
hope you got the lesson... 
@Angelwhispers (8978)
• United States
27 Mar 08
Moral of the story: IF YOU CAN NOT BEAT EM, JOIN EM!
Great job thank you so much for that!
@Angelwhispers (8978)
• United States
28 Mar 08
Oh boy don't I feel dumb :))) You really got all that out of that fable? WOW I am impressed :))))
1 person likes this
@posham (1236)
• Philippines
27 Mar 08
actually, no... hehehe.. i was going for the common sense is not always the right one... hehe... you might think you're wrong because you're different and unconventional but truth is, you might be the most practical and wise of the bunch.. genuises are frowned upon in some societies but if they didn't fight for what they know, and they just joined with the rest, then we'll never discover that the earth is not actually the center of the glaxy and that the earth is not actually flat... 
@graceandowen (1637)
•
26 Mar 08
unfortunalty i dont have any folk law stories but that touched me deeply and am now going to search for some others and will let you know shortly.
thanks for sharing the story with us. xx
@Angelwhispers (8978)
• United States
26 Mar 08
The picture in the book is of all these white pandas in agony and crying while dripping black onto each other as they consoled. It touched my heart as well... Good glad you are going to find one to share. :))))
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
27 Mar 08
what a wonderful story,
I loved the book the king must die, about greek mythology, I read it in college many years ago, it was captivating.
