The Woman who Jumped into the Sky

An Australian Folktale

By: Bill Gordh

Narrated by: Bill Gordh

Length: 11 mins

Publisher's summary

Award-winning storyteller Bill Gordh (Film Advisory Board Award of Excellence winner, National Association of Parenting Periodicals Gold Award winner) presents this folk tale live with no script, accompanied only by his own dynamic banjo playing.

A young woman named Pirili lived in a village. She was kind and generous. A hunter named Mangowa from another village saw her and wished to marry her. She did not wish to marry him. He brought gifts and food and flowers. He hunted just for her and brought her everything he caught. He did not bring food to his own. She still did not want to marry him. Her village ate the food. He brought the elders of her village food and gifts and asked permission to take her as his wife and take her with him. They loved all the food and agreed. Pirili did not want to go. He got mad, picked her up and began to carry her to his village. It is a long trip.

When he reaches hill looking down on his village he realizes how long it has been and how he has not been bringing the people their the food he had always supplied. He got angry and threw Pirili to the ground. She got up and with all her strength jumped - up - up- up into the sky. She landed in the Milky Way where the star women lived. Mangowa leaped into the sky and began throwing stars. The stars came down to earth and made holes in the ground that became lakes and ponds. The star women grabbed Mangowa and threw him back down to earth and Pirili joined the sisters and became a star that we now see in the constellation of Orion.

©2013 Bill Gordh (P)2014 Audible Inc.