Week Three Storytelling: Jewish Fairy Tales

Olive, the kitten, was used to getting what she wanted. She walked with her tail high in the hair and her fur always perfectly in place. Because of her sometimes snooty attitude, Olive didn't have any friends. But this suited her just fine. She was young, curious and sneaky, loving to play pranks and tricks on other animals.

She did have one loyal friend though, and he was a dog named Ranger. Ranger was older, more experienced with Olive's schemes, but didn't always learn from them. He loved to chase after Olive, or any animal that ran away from him, and was always smiling. Good-natured, but gullible, Ranger and Olive had a delicate friendship.

One winter was especially difficult, and Olive, who was already naturally sassy, became even more surly when she was hungry. One day she couldn't take it anymore, she told Ranger that their friendship had to end so they could each survive. She made Ranger promise that they would never again cross paths and must live forever a part. Both agreed and went on their way.

Ranger was hurt but didn't want to fight, so he moped away. Olive shrugged him off, and promptly went to a nearby house to the comforts of a warm fire and plenty of mice. She pawed at the door of the old wood home and was let in, greeted with a warm dish of milk and a soft carpet. By day she caught mice in an old barn and at night curled up in the chair by fireplace. Content and satisfied, Olive went to sleep every night with a full stomach.

Ranger, on the other hand, had more problems. Reduced to wandering the forests and surrounded fields for food, many nights he was starving and in search of shelter. He happened upon sheep, who allowed him to share their shelter if he warned them of wolves. Loyal and obedient, Ranger successfully scared off a pack of wolves in the night.

As Ranger continued on his journey he happened upon a wood house in the forest. Delirious, starving and desperate he went to the door to beg for food. He was let in and given a bowl of food, then he promptly fell asleep. During the night he heard a ruckus, went outside and drove away another pack of wolves. His time in the wilderness alone had harden him, given him grey hairs and made him more intimidating. When he returned the owner had awaken to the noise and thanked Ranger for his service, saying he could stay as long as he wanted as a watch dog.

When Olive awoke she was surprised to see Ranger there as well. Angered by his break of agreement, she refused to speak to him. Ranger remained bashful and timid around her, never wanting to cross her path. Olive tried many times to make Ranger leave, playing tricks and planning schemes, but the homeowner wouldn't kick him out. Frustrated, Olive resolved to just ignoring his presence and hissing whenever he came near.

(Source)

To this day, the dog and the cat don't get along in the same household, with the dog carefully avoiding the cat's path and the cat swiping paws whenever a dog is near.

Author's Note. This story is based on The Quarrel Of The Cat And The Dog from The Jewish Fairy Tales. The plot is almost the same, I just added more detail names to the characters. I liked the ending moral that this is show dogs and cats interact to this day, so I kept that idea when I retold the story. I think anyone that has a cat or a dog can relate to how they act together.

Bibliography. The Quarrel Of The Cat And The Dog from The Jewish Fairy Tales by Gertrude Landa (1919).

Week Three Essay: Writing Experience

In high school I completed the International Baccalaureate Program, which focused on overarching themes throughout the school year and taught us how to analyze, think and question things we learned in each class. Similar to AP, but in my opinion more difficult, it was less about memorizing facts and dates, and more about exploring the whys and hows of history, english, social studies and math. Our testing was all purely essay as well, with the exception of sciences and math, which featured some short answer in addition to multiple choice.

(Source)

For instance, my senior IBHL english class focused on the theme of love. Every book we read had this theme and throughout our time we wrote plenty of essays analyzing the colors, characters, motifs, etc. All of this culminated in a end-of-the-year test that was part written part oral, where we basically had an hour to write an analysis of a book passage and explain it to our teacher. Through this course, and my other IB classes, I learned a lot about writing essays about literature. I learned how to recognize and analyze elements within a novel, connect these themes to other stories and create well-written and lengthy essays in a short amount of time.

With the exception of college credit, none of this helped me when I came to OU.

Not to discredit my high school, I thought the IB program was a great opportunity. I got the best teachers, had classes with the best students and learned a lot of skills I use today. But, my writing has definitely changed since then.

I remember my first journalism writing class; Writing for Mass Media. I had to throw out everything I'd learned in an English class (namely, Oxford commas), and relearn how to use punctuation, when to use abbreviations and how to properly list states. It was a huge change for me and that class was not only difficult, but a huge learning experience. I hated that class while I was in it, but now I am thankful I learned AP style and know basic rules that I am now expected to know. I like the way I write now better anyway. Less fluff, more information. At least that's the journalistic way.

(Source)

I enjoy being able to read a newspaper or magazine and see the same rules and concepts put into play there. They write and follow the same rules as I do and they are  "in the real world." I think the essay writing I did in high school served me well and taught me many things. The IB program challenged me to think harder, delve deeper and question more often than I would have, but college has taught me a more practical, applicable style of writing that I use today.

Week Three Reading Diary: Jewish Fairy Tales

This week I read Jewish Fairy Tales. Below are my thoughts.

Part A: I enjoyed reading some of these stories, especially when they gave reasoning for phenomenons today. For example, The Giant Of The Flood revealed one story in Noah's Ark and explained why there are not Ogs today. The Og disobeyed his initial promise to Noah, and therefore the giant perished and why there aren't any now. I also enjoyed reading about what he did with the grapes that were made into wine. Sacrificing certain animals, according to the story, created certain characteristics whenever people drink wine. So now, if people drink too much, they are silly like monkeys and beasts like pigs, and if they only drink a little they are shy like sheep. I think those kind of stories are very interesting and entertaining to read.

I also enjoyed The Quarrel Of The Cat And The Dog, because of the way it showed off each animal's personalities. The cat is sassy, defensive and selfish (and anyone who owns a cat knows this is true) while the dog is honest, forgiving and caring. I liked this story because of how the animals were portrayed and how they has affected their relationship today. I thought it was a cute and accurate way to describe each of their personalities.

I thought The Beggar King was an interesting story as well. I think these themes of humility, empathy and kindness relate back to leadership skills that I've learned about in school. To be a good leader, one must also be a follower. I've learned that leaders shouldn't ask any of their followers to do anything they themselves wouldn't do, and I think through this experience the king has learned a lot more about his subjects and their lives. Sometimes rulers are too distanced from those they oversee, which gives a disproportioned idea of what life is like. This story was interesting to read because I could see the evolution of the king and how he reacted to his situation.

Part B: What I found most interesting about this second set of stories was all the elements of magic present in each story. In King For Three Days, he consults a holy man that can see into the future and predict how he will end his battle. In Higgledy-Piggledy Palace, a spirit saves Sarah from the king all because of and Abraham's prayer. Rabbi's Bogey Man ventures even further into the supernatural when he creates a Frankenstein-like character to do this chores. It makes me wonder where the story of Frankenstein came from and if any of the plot has roots in one of these stories.

I also noticed many talking animals, who turn out to be fairies or Prophets. In The Fairy Frog, the frog ends up being the fairy son of Adam and showers the couple with riches, knowledge and food. Many of these stories have these supernatural elements which reward the characters for doing good deeds or obeying.

(Fairy Frog)

Overall, I enjoyed these stories more than my last section. They are more "fun" and a much easier read. I think they hold lessons about character, which are meant to be passed on to those who read them.

Week Two: Famous Last Words

I think I honestly had more fun doing my storybook assignment (which just included brief ideas) than the main storytelling/reading assignment. I think when I first chose Bible Women I didn't realize the length of all of the stories and how much the language might throw me off from the plot line. The beginning paragraphs that outlined the story were very helpful, but in the end, reading 20 stories written in old English was difficult and made enjoying the stories harder. I still got the gist of what happened and liked reading about how women were portrayed in the Bible, but might have enjoyed another folktale more.

Doing the storybook assignment was fun because I got to see a lot of topics that I was interested in. I read plenty of stories while looking for ideas and was surprised that I liked so many. Especially the mermaid tales, they were really interesting. Through that assignment I got to read other Beauty and The Beast stories, a story about Hades and the creation of winter, mermaid myths and more of the many Aesop's fables.

(Hades and Perseph)

I enjoyed reading all of these stories and I know there are many more on each of these topics. I was especially drawn to the story of Hades and Persephone, because I like how the story ended with something that still exists today: winter. I know many Indian folktales end like that, and I always enjoyed reading about these alternative reasonings. I think stories about astrology and the stars are always fascinating because they have similar ideas and concepts. I think the storybook assignment will turn out to be really interesting and fun to write.

I have also gotten to read some past storybooks and have enjoyed seeing others' work. Everyone I've seen has been so creative and interesting. I really liked seeing how people used old myth and folktales to apply to modern context. I've seen Aesop's fables applied to Mean Girls, inside Tinkerbell's mind in Peter Pan and mermaid tales. All of them have impressed me, so I think making my own will be pretty cool.

Week Two Essay: Female Characters In The Bible

It's not necessarily surprising, but it was interesting to me the way women were portrayed in many of these stories. The first part, specifically, featured many stories that revolved around men with some female characters. Mostly sidelined as wives, child bearers and handmaids, women in stories like Rebekah and Rachel have a heavy focus on a primary male character. The woman's job is primarily to give birth to children and when she can't, she finds a way to give him sons anyway.

Furthermore, when women were unfavored by God, they were deemed barren and couldn't please their husbands with children. I think these stories show a lot about the priorities and circumstances in society during this time period (and for a long time after that as well) about how women were seen and treated. In Hannah, she is first barren and is so distraught she prays for days until she conceives. However, Hannah's husband's other wife, Peninnah, has children. In many of the stories (including Leah) one of the wives is cursed by being barren and the other has the Lord's favor, and has children. This creates a rivalry and pits wives against each other, each competing to have the most children -- especially sons. There were no stories of female friends, they only interacted in competition, which was an interesting point to the female relationships in the stories.

However, the second part of the Bible Women Unit portrayed women very differently. They are given more power, legitimized and used to seek advice. The same traditional themes of marriage, children and husbands are present, but other, more complicated story lines arise. In Susannah, she is almost sentenced to death because she is accused of cheating by two elders. At first her perspective isn't given any merit, but after an angel descends and clears the situation she is redeemed and seen as honest. Susannah is given a central part and portrayed in a positive, virtuous way.

(Susannah and The Elders, 15th Century)

I think that these common themes are associated with woman in many time periods and cultures. Seen primarily as child bearers, women throughout history have been sidelines to the desires and needs of men. These stories are an interesting take on the roles and responsibilities of women. I think it's interesting to read about how these roles and relationships have changed and evolved over time.

Week Two Storytelling: Bible Women

Susan -- Susie, for short -- had a habit for telling little white lies. Harmless, but still untrue, Susie sometimes tangled herself in a web of small lies about where she was, who she was with and what she was doing. Inherently good-natured, Susie used her lies just for fun. Instead of saying she was watching a movie with her mom, she'd tell her boyfriend that she was at the mall with friends. If she was practicing piano at home, she'd instead say she was having pizza with friends. Her lying never got her into trouble and she never lied about anything important, but her lying turned into a habit and her friends started to notice.

One day, when her boyfriend was out of town, two of Susie's friends, Adam and Charlie, decided to plan a scheme to show Susie the consequences of her lying. They told her friends, boyfriend and even her parents so that everyone was in on the scheme.

The two boys went over to Susie's to hang out, eat pizza and watch a movie. After the movie ended, Adam, asked to go to the bathroom. While he was gone, Charlie set the plan into action. He casually moved closer to Susie while telling a joke. Susie laughed at his punchline and he quickly put his hand on her leg. Susie looked at him quizzically, seeing as Charlie was one of Susie's boyfriend's good friends. At that moment, Adam walked back in the room. Seeing them sitting so close, Adam furrowed his brow but quickly looked away.

Thinking nothing of it, Susie went about the rest of the week. When her boyfriend returned she happily went to his house for his welcome home party. After a few minutes, Susie's boyfriend came up to her and said quietly, "I heard what happened with you and Charlie while I was gone."

Confused, Susie opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. "The night you two watched a movie?" he continued, "Adam told me he walked in on you and Charlie."

Susie quickly looked at Adam and Charlie. "What are you guys talking about?" She exclaimed, "Nothing happened between us!"

"I know what I saw," Adam continued, "It just didn't seem right now to tell him."

"I have no idea what you're saying!" Susie said hysterically. Now everyone was staring at her and she turned bright red. She was so confused, how had this happened? Her and Charlie were just friends, everyone knew that. But now, as she looked around the room, she felt her friends' skepticism and judgement. Tears filled her eyes as she turned away. Why hadn't Charlie said anything?

She looked desperately at Charlie, hoping he would tell everyone the truth. Nobody is believing me… She thought.

(Web source)

After hushed whispers between her friends and some awkward silences, Charlie finally stepped forward.

"She's right," he said, "Nothing happened."

Relieved, Susie looked to her boyfriend hoping he'd believe her now.

"This was all set up to show you what your little white lies do to us," Susie's boyfriend said, "We're tired of your little lies and you don't realize that it hurts when you don't tell the truth."

Shocked and embarrassed, Susie looked at her friends standing before her. They all knew about this she thought. I can't believe I've been lying for no reason.

"I never realized how harmful lying can be," Susie tearfully said, "I promise to not do it again."

Susie was truthful from that day on, and she realized how good it felt to be honest.

---

Author's note. This story is roughly based on Susannah from Bible Women. In the story, Susannah is accused of being with another man while her husband is away. However, in the original story, Susannah isn't a liar, she is just wrongly accused and nobody believes her. She is accused by two elderly men who have bad intentions. Before being sentenced to death, an angel comes and saves Susannah by questioning their judgement and revealing that the elders were lying. I know my version strays from the original, but I wanted there to be a reason why Susannah (or Susie) is accused of cheating. I came up with the idea that her friends are trying to teach her a lesson and that's why they thought up this scheme. In the end I wanted Susie to be redeemed and learn a lesson.

Bibliography. "Susannah" from the Bible Women Unit in King James Bible (1611). Web Source. 

Three Pretty Girls Were In Them Then (extra credit)

Life at sea is two things: wet and boring. Eva thought this as she looked out the small, cloudy window into the grey-blue seascape before her. Sighing, she started to whistle, which was something that she enjoyed and which naturally annoyed both of her sisters -- Eliza and Margaret. Each girl had her own talents, Eliza could sing any song in perfect pitch and Margaret was a well-respect violinist with fans around the world.

Being the youngest, Eva was always in the shadow of her sisters' beauty and charm. She was jealous of her sisters' talents and thought whistling had to be one of the most overrated things someone could do.

"Why could it not be dancing?" She thought, "Or even painting?" She looked sourly at Margaret cleaning her violin bow and said, "Can't I learn to play the violin, Margaret? Way more boys like you than they do me."

Margaret was the oldest and therefore the wisest. She set down her bow and gave Eva a look,"Don't be silly, Eva. Whistling is a perfectly good talent and men are just a waste of time." Margaret was the prettiest, in Eva's opinion, she was tall and slender with light freckles dotted across her cheeks and nose. Her hair hung long and straight down her back, and years of practicing violin made her slender fingers nimble and strong. Margaret was the most serious of the three, taking responsibility and acting in place of a mom for the other two. "Sometimes too much like a mom..." Eva thought.

Just then, Eliza burst in, in hair in a perfectly messy bun on top of her head. "Helllllloooooo, sisters!" She sang and then promptly sat on a chair next to Margaret. Her eyes were wide with excitement. "You'll never guess where we're performing next." At this, Eva looked away so neither sister would see her roll her eyes. She hated performing.

"What is it now?" asked Margaret, placing her violin and bow back inside its case.

"Another wedding!" Eliza exclaimed, "We're sailing there now and will arrive tomorrow, which is New Year's Day. How exciting it will be and there are sure to be handsome men there." Eliza said with a smile. As the middle sister she was the opposite of Margaret. Playful, funny and a little bit wild, Eliza gave no regard to rules or traditions. She liked to stay up late, sleep in and defy Margaret in almost any way she could. As a flirt, she used her talent, singing, to win men over which had gotten her into trouble over the years. Eliza loved to sing and loved to show others she could sing.

Excited to finally get off the ship and stay on land for a few days, Eva barely slept that night. Most of her days were spent at sea, so celebrating a holiday on land, and at a wedding, was an exciting thought. She just wished they didn't have to perform. Eva was shy and hated standing in front of crowds. She didn't want to stand next to her sisters and listen to everyone fawn over their talents and beauty. She drifted into sleep feeling anxious, excited and dread all at the same time.

The next day they arrived, going ashore to the promised wedding performance. Eva reach for Margaret's left hand and Eliza's right hand, realizing how lucky she was to not have to stand alone.

---

I saw three ships come sailing by,

Come sailing by, come sailing by;

I saw three ships come sailing by,

On New Year's Day in the morning.

And what do you think was in them then,

Was in them then, was in them then?

And what do you think was in them then,

On New Year's Day in the morning?

Three pretty girls were in them then,

Were in them then, were in them then;

Three pretty girls were in them then,

On New Year's Day in the morning.

And one could whistle, and one could sing,

And one could play on the violin—

Such joy there was at my wedding,

On New Year's day in the morning.

Week Two Reading Diary: Bible Women

Part A: I found the first series of the Bible Women very interesting to read. Many of the stories, while focusing on women, seemed more to surround marriage or relations with men. While I know this is common in history, it is still fascinating to see how self-worth, pride and honor are based on marriage and giving birth to sons. I noticed that in Leah Rachel was punished for her favor by being barren, which seemed to be the end all curse for this time period.

What was most interesting to me was that while these stories focused on women in the Bible, most stories started out with or spoke mostly to the male characters. The texts kept to a few topics, namely marriage, children and the happiness of their husbands.

I was intrigued by Delilah's story, which was the only story that didn't include marriage or children. As she attempted to trick her husband to show her his weakness, she continually believed his lies. I was also curious about why she would continuously believe what he said every day if it always turned out to be untrue? Additionally, why she would go through with cutting his hair, if it would weaken him on purpose so that he could be sent to prison? I think it might go against the role of a wife to betray her husband in this way.

Part B: The second half of these stories showed women in a different light in the Bible. Aside from common themes of marriage, children and following God, the stories outline more complicated situations. It was interesting to see a woman in The Witch of Endor is not a wife or daughter. Her role is to consult the king in his matters and show him the ghost of Samuel. I think these stories show a little bit more of power and influence for women than the previous section. In Herodias, she demands the head of John the Baptist of the king, and he obliges. Also in Esther, she pleads for the king's mercy and for the execution of Haman, which is granted. Throughout these stories women are portrayed with a bit more credibility than just wives and child bearers.

My favorite story was Susannah's, which showed how she kept her honor and word and in return found justice. It also showed more of the woman's side of the story, something that many of the previous stories don't show. I liked reading how the angel raised questions to the trial and helped the king see that the elders were lying.

Overall, I found these stories to be an interesting look into the values and circumstances during this time. It was cool to see the role of women in famous and lesser known stories. However, being stories from the Bible, sometimes I found the language difficult to read and understand. The blurbs at the top were very helpful when I was confused or trying to decipher what exactly happened.

Week One: Famous Last Words

This week I did something in this class that I have never done before. I have never rewrote a story or folktale in my own words and honestly, I had trouble starting it. Even though I write a lot for my major and on assignments, I haven't done a whole lot of creative writing. Maybe some in high school, but it's been a long time. I started the assignment multiple times and switched stories a few times before being satisfied. I think this also comes from my inner perfectionist with my work. However, I realized that it wasn't that difficult to write once I started. I learned that staring at a blank page can be the hardest thing, and just getting words on the paper helps to keep the story flowing. In the end I was happy with my story and glad to finally have figured out a way to start writing.     

          (mouse)


        (elephant eating)

As I completed some of the assignments for this week I read quite a few Storybooks written by other students. I noticed the ones I liked the best related pop culture or modern aspects to older folktales or stories. I enjoyed seeing the connections authors drew between two seemingly different subjects. I know at the end of the course I will have to write something similar, so I hope to find my own connections between some story I enjoy today and a historical one featured in the class. I think it makes assignments more enjoyable and entertaining to read.

As far as my other classes, they have just started. I'm not sure any of them relate to Mythology and Folklore, at least not directly. I am in Business Finance, Public Relations Publications and Mass Communications Law. I'm excited about my classes this semester, maybe less about Finance, and think they can really help me further my knowledge and understanding of public relations. Other than that I moved in to my apartment (with four other housemates) and am still in the process of unpacking. I think this semester is off to a great start!

Blogger Templates Tech Tip

I choose one of the templates from the "Travel" category. I like the templates that feature a large picture in the background or as a header with a plain place for the actual content. Typically, I prefer blogs with only one module in the center with separate pages for my "About Me" and other information. I actually have a Wordpress that I used to keep my family and friends updated while I was in China. I made my own header and used my own pictures, which I like more than a generic image. I also have a Weebly, which I made for a class as an online resume. I used separate tabs for education, experience, portfolio, contact and study abroad information. I liked that format a lot because it was very easy to draft and drop different content boxes around the page. It also integrated social media buttons which made it easy to connect with the rest if my online presence.

(Personal photo)

Week One: Introduction

(personal photo)

My name is Jessica Murphy. I was born in China, raised in Tulsa, OK. and I am graduating in May 2015 with a degree in public relations and minors in Chinese and business. I hope to utilize my language skills to further strengthen and develop the Sino-American relationship. Multiple trips to China have given me insights into Chinese culture and history in my pursuit of fluency in Chinese.

This past summer I interned at Mary Kay Inc. in the Corporate Communication Department. There I helped with Mary Kay's annual Seminar, which brings over 30,000 Independent Beauty Consultants to the Dallas area for recognition, inspiration and motivation. I helped plan, organize and execute several events including a surprise flash gifting series, a partnership with Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas and the pink Cadillac's 45th birthday party. I worked closely with the Corporate Social Responsibility team, gaining knowledge and a better understanding for how the Corporate Communications team works.

I love to travel and have been to China a total of five times. Most recently, I studied abroad at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China for the fall 2013 semester. I had an incredible experience where I ate street food, rode my bike every day to school and climbed mountains with old-style Chinese temples. I visited the Great Wall, rode camels in the Gobi Desert and traveled to Shanghai over the Chinese National Holiday.

Currently I am taking Business Finance, Public Relations Publications, Mass Communications Law and Mythology and Folklore. I work in the Student Services office, helping to better assist Gaylord advisors and connect students with them. I am involved in the Gamma Phi Beta Sorority, Public Relations Student Society of America, and Lindsey + Asp, which is a completely student-run public relations and advertising agency.

I’m an avid Pinterest user, HGTV addict and cat lover. I love peanut M&M's, English history and taking walks at night. In my free time I read, cook and attempt to balance work, school and living with four other housemates.

Week One Storybook Favorites

The first project that caught my eye was The Prince Diaries, mostly because I enjoy the popular book and movie Anne Hathaway series, "The Princess Diaries." I like how the author used a different, often overlooked, perspective of the prince. The princess is always emphasized, but the prince barely has any lines or thoughts represented. The author also ventures into what happens after "happily ever after" which is an unanswered question in many fairy tales, and is something I've always wondered. The posts are written in diary entries which is a unique way to tell the opinion of a prince. In terms of the layout, I think the pictures and site layout is appropriate for the content. The conversation-style writing is relatable and entertaining.

I next looked at Peter Pan because Peter Pan is one of my favorite stories. I enjoyed the story from Tinkerbell's point of view, showcasing her sassy personality and strong perspective. The story of their friendship and her affection for him is never told and I like the way it is portray in this Storybook. I think Wendy's story of young love is charming and sweet, revealing how Peter Pan's affect on the people around him. I like that the pictures are at the top of the story and I think the green layout is very fitting for the theme.

The last one I looked at was Mean Girls Morals. Mean Girls is a movie I could watch over and over again, quoting it every time, so naturally I was curious about what the Storybook said. I liked how the author tied a pop culture element with the Aesops fables. I think it's really cool how there are connections between things that you'd never think were connected. I thought this Storybook was hilarious and entertaining. I loved hearing about the characters in a different light and learning more about the characters in different situations. The layout, of course, had to be girly and I thought the pictures and stories fit well together.

(The Plastics, source: Picky Wallpapers)

Week One: Un-Textbook Course Overview

Units of interest

I'm sorry these are out of order, I just picked and chose ones I liked…

1. Any of the Grimm stories. Obviously, I've seen all the Disney-fied versions, so I think reading the originals would be really interesting to learn about. I know they are very different, and a lot more grotesque, but I would learn a lot about where the stories originated.
2. The Monkey King. I think this would be interesting to study because I actually heard about this story through my high school Chinese teacher. She made it into a story we could more easily translate and speak as elementary speakers, so I think it would be cool to read the original.
3. Indian Fairy Tales. I love fairy tales and would like to see how other cultures portray these characters in childhood stories. I also like the idea of hearing an audio version of these stories.
4. King Arthur. I love English history and I think reading about his knights, quests and how he became king would be really interesting.
5. Nursery Rhymes. I like these because I've heard all these rhymes growing up. I think it would be beneficial (and fun) to go back through and see them through the lens of this class.
6. Life of the Buddha. I read Siddhartha in high school and really enjoyed it. I think it would be good to read this account of Buddha's story.

Week One Storytelling: The Fox And The Stork

Gus The Mouse And Harry The Elephant

One day a young, naive mouse named Gus decided he wanted to have some fun with his neighbor on a boring sunny day. Tired of running through the halls and chasing the scent of cheese, he scurried across the lawn to Harry the elephant's rainforest home. Harry was large, even for an elephant, and wrinkles lined his face and trunk. His mind was full of knowledge and his legs sore from travel.

Thinking he was so clever, Gus squeaked at Harry, "Please come dine with me tonight, Harry. I am so terribly bored and in need of company." Harry agreed, happy to please the young mouse. They set the time for 6 p.m. and Gus scurried back home, chuckling as he went.

(mouse)

Promptly at 6 p.m. Harry stomped to Gus' tiny home. Gus greeted him, serving a wheel of cheese fit for three mice, but smaller than Harry's foot. Being too polite to say anything, Harry could only touch his trunk to the block of cheese, barely eating anything all night. Gus ended the night with a laugh, sharing with his friends the great tale of Harry the elephant trying to eat cheese.

Harry spent the next few days pondering how to teach Gus a lesson. Being old and wise, Harry didn't want to lose his temper and or yell at the young Gus. Using his mellow disposition, Harry devised a plan to show Gus his own treatment.

The next week Harry calmly asked Gus to dinner, promising fruits and grasses. Surprised, Gus happily agreed and went to meet Harry. When Gus arrived, Harry had prepared an elaborate meal… All high above Gus in the trees. While Harry feasted, Gus sat frustrated on the ground floor, unable to reach any of the food. Gus scurried home, hungry and ashamed for how he had treated his old friend.

(elephant eating)

Author's note. This story is based on the Aesop for Children tale "The Fox And The Stork." In the original story, the Fox invites the Stork to eat dinner serving only soup, which the Stork could not eat. Being even-tempered, the Stork didn't get angry but invited the Fox to dinner where he served fish in a tall jar that the Fox could not reach. The lesson was that one should not play tricks on your neighbors unless you can stand the same treatment yourself.

Bibliography. "The Fox And The Stork" by Aesop, from The Aesop for Children (2006). Web Source: The Aesop for Children.

Week One: Favorite Place

Traveling is one of my favorite things to do. I've been to six countries and many states within the US. Here are a few of my favorite places!

Beijing, China

I am adopted from China and since then have returned four times to travel, visit and study abroad. Most recently I spent my fall 2013 semester at Tsinghua University in Beijing where I rode a bike to school, visited the Gobi desert and practiced Chinese in one of the largest cities in the world.

(Personal photo from Beijing, China taken November 2013)

(Personal photo from Beijing, China taken November 2013)

(Personal photo from the Gobi Desert, China taken October 2013)

Tulsa, Oklahoma

I'm from Tulsa, so this city -- as well as its residents --- holds a special place in my heart. 

(Personal photo from downtown Tulsa taken summer 2013)