The Magic Paintbrush

A long time ago in China there lived a poor boy called

Liang. He had no family, so he made his living by doing odd jobs for other people in his
village, such as cutting wood and tending cattle. His life was difficult, but Liang was a
generous boy and always willing to help people who needed it. In his heart he had a dream.
He wanted to paint pictures and become a great artist. He practised drawing all the time.
When he was in the forest cutting wood, he drew birds and animals with a stick. If he was
looking after a farmers cows he drew on the sides of the barn. Whatever he was doing he
drew plants, animals, birds and people. He thought of nothing else except drawing, and
soon he became very good at it.
One night Liang dreamed that an old man gave him a paintbrush. The man said it was a
magic paintbrush and Liang should use it to help people. When Liang woke up the next
morning, he was surprised to see that he had a beautiful paintbrush in his hand. Liang was
hungry, so he painted a bowl of rice. Suddenly the rice became real, and he ate it. Now he felt
happy, so he drew a bird. The bird came to life and flew away.
When Liang went into the village he met an old farmer carrying water from the river to his
field. It was a long walk and the man was very tired. Liang painted a river beside the field
and the river came to life. Now the farmer could easily bring the water to his crops. Soon
Liang met another villager who was crying because his cow had died in the night, and there
was no milk for his children. Liang drew a cow, and it came to life. The villager was
overjoyed and happily began to milk his cow.
From that day Liang used his paintbrush to help the people in his village. Whenever they
needed something, Liang would paint it. Soon the villagers began to prosper, and word of
Liangs magic paintbrush began to travel beyond the village.
People asked him, Why dont you use your magic paintbrush to become rich?
What else do I need? replied Liang. I feel rich because I can help.
It wasnt long before a rich man who lived near the village heard about Liangs magic
paintbrush, and thought he would use it to make himself richer than the emperor. This man
decided to steal Liangs paintbrush. He sent some of his *thugs to Liangs home, where they
captured Liang and put him in prison. The rich man took the paintbrush.

The rich man wanted to show off his power so he invited some friends to his house. He drew
a lot of pictures, but not one picture became real. The rich man figured there must be some
special secret that he didnt know about, so he sent for Liang. When Liang stood before him
he said, If you draw some pictures for me and they become real, I will let you go free.
Liang knew that this rich man was not a good man. He didnt want to help, but he wanted to
be free. He had an idea. He said, I will help you, but you must let me go.
Paint me a golden mountain, said the rich man. I want to go there and get lots of gold.
What he didnt say out loud was, And then I will be the richest man in the kingdom, richer
even than the emperor himself!
Liang drew a picture of the sea.
Why did you draw the sea? said the rich man, I told you to draw the mountain. I want
gold, not fish!
The mountain is on the other side of the sea. replied Liang. Ill show you. Liang drew the
golden mountain on the other side of the sea.
When the rich man saw the mountain shining in gold his eyes lit up like two yellow suns.
Yes! he said, Thats much better! But the mountain is far from here. How will I get there?
Ill draw you a boat to get to the mountain, said Liang. And he drew a golden dragon boat
that was even bigger and more beautiful than the emperors boat. The rich man climbed
aboard the boat and stood in the bow facing the golden mountain. He said to Liang, Now
draw me a wind to take the boat to the mountain. Liang began to draw a wind, and the boat
set sail. The rich man stretched his arms out to grab the golden mountain. Make the wind
stronger so I can get there faster, he said to Liang. Liang kept drawing and the wind got
stronger. Soon the wind became a terrible gale and the rich mans beautiful boat sank beneath
the sea and took him down with it.
People say that Liang married a beautiful girl from his village and had a big family, and they
were happy all their days.
* thug: a violent and rough person
Story retold by Mary Mahoney
Creative Commons photo credit: Phil Robinson on Flickr

Raven and the First People

Raven was bored. He was walking along the beach in Haida Gwai,
looking for some new way to amuse himself. As he walked along the beach, the blue ocean in
front of him and the green forest behind him didnt seem interesting. Raven wanted to play,
but there was no one to play with.
Then he heard a strange sound, unlike any sound he knew. He looked up and down the beach.
Where was it coming from? As he walked he noticed a large white clamshell lying in the
sand. Inside the clamshell were tiny creatures, unlike any he had seen before.
Raven bent down to get a closer look. The creatures seemed afraid of him, so he began to
coax them in a gentle voice, Come out. Come out. Dont be afraid. I wont hurt you.
A few of the creatures came out of the clamshell. They were very different from Raven. They
had no feathers, no wings, and no beaks. Like him, they walked on two legs, but they had
arms, faces with mouths, and black hair. They spoke to each other in a language that Raven
didnt understand. These tiny creatures were the first humans.
Raven enjoyed watching these humans play and explore the world. After a while, when he
was beginning to feel bored again, he noticed that these humans were only men. There were
no women. Raven had an idea. He wondered if he could find some women. He searched for a
long time. Then he saw some *chitons. He opened one of the chitons and found some lovely,
tiny women. He brought the women to the men.
Raven enjoyed watching the behaviour of the men and women. He saw them begin to pair off
and have children. The human families moved to other parts of the island. Since that day,
many generations of humans have grown and flourished, and Raven has never been bored.
* Chiton: a large sea shell
Story retold by Mary Mahoney

Sedna the Sea Goddess

Sedna was a beautiful Inuit girl who didnt want to get married. Many
hunters wanted to marry her, but she refused their offers. Her father scolded her, saying, I
am getting older, and soon you will need a good husband who can provide you with food and
furs. You must marry the next hunter who asks for you. Sedna still wasnt interested.
Soon a young hunter from a distant place came to her fathers camp . He was dressed in warm
furs, and spoke in a soft voice. He promised to provide a good home and plenty of animals
for food and clothing. Although he kept his face hidden under his hood, Sedna was very
impressed with him, so she agreed to marry him.
Sedna got into her husbands kayak and travelled with him to her new home. When they
arrived at his island, she saw that her home was nothing but some sticks and bits of moss and
feathers clinging to a large rock. Her husband took off his hood, and she realized that he was
not a man, but an evil raven. He never hunted, he only caught fish. Sedna was cold, lonely,
hungry, and very unhappy. Every day she cried for her father to come and save her.
Her father heard her cries and decided to rescue her. He paddled his kayak to the island where
she was living. On their way home, Sedna looked back and saw that the raven was following
them. He was gaining on them quickly. As the raven came close, her father took his paddle
and struck the bird, who had to fall back. Then the raven flapped his powerful wings at the
ocean and caused a huge storm to blow up.
When her father saw that their lives were in danger, he became afraid for his own life. He
threw Sedna over the side of the kayak. Sedna tried to save herself. She grabbed onto the
kayak with her fingers, but her father took his paddle and beat at her fingers until they broke
off. As they sank into the ocean, her fingers turned into seals and fish. Again, Sedna grabbed
the kayak with her hands, but her father took his paddle and beat her hands until they also fell
into the water. As they sank into the ocean, her hands turned into whales and walrus. Sedna
also sank into the ocean.
Sedna lives at the bottom of the ocean. She is the goddess of the sea. She is the one who
provides animals for the hunters, but only when she feels generous. When she is angry, and
this is often, the hunters cant find food; and the people go hungry.
Story retold by Mary Mahoney

Two sisters and the cat

Mrs. Wilson and Mrs. Smith are sisters. Mrs. Wilson lives in a house in Duncan
and Mrs. Smith lives in a condominium in Victoria. One day Mrs. Wilson visited her sister.
When her sister answered the door, Mrs. Wilson saw tears in her eyes. "What's the matter?"
she asked. Mrs. Smith said "My cat Sammy died last night and I have no place to bury him".

She began to cry again. Mrs. Wilson was very sad because she knew her sister
loved the cat very much. Suddenly Mrs. Wilson said "I can bury your cat in my garden in
Duncan and you can come and visit him sometimes." Mrs. Smith stopped crying and the two
sisters had tea together and a nice visit.

It was now five o'clock and Mrs. Wilson said it was time for her to go home.
She put on her hat, coat and gloves and Mrs. Smith put the dead Sammy into a shopping bag.
Mrs. Wilson took the shopping bag and walked to the bus stop. She waited a long time for the
bus so she bought a newspaper. When the bus arrived, she got on the bus, sat down and put
the shopping bag on the floor beside her feet. She then began to read the newspaper. When
the bus arrived at her bus stop, she got off the bus and walked for about two minutes.
Suddenly she remembered she had left the shopping bag on the bus.
[Story by Laurie Buchanan]