The Wild Life On Craigmuir Lake.

Frequenting our #lake #shores on a regular bases due to the #park where they live is invaded by #dogs off leads. The #blackSwan contently seeks a #safehaven in our #backyard. We have become good friend with them since we have moved in. So in honour of them I will be sharing the this #dreamtime story about their connection to #country. You can find it on our webpage and then click on our blog.

www.craigmuirlakehouse.

In the dreaming. When Wurrunna returned to his tribe after one of his walkabouts he brought with him some weapons never before seen by men. These, he said, were made in a country where there were only women, and they had given them to him in exchange for his possum-skin rug, saying, "Go, bring us more rugs, and we will give you more weapons."

The tribes were delighted with the weapons, and agreed to go as far as the women's country with him on his next expedition to Oobi Oobi, the sacred mountain, taking rugs for purpose of ceremonial exchange.

Wurrunna, when they started, warned his companions that there were unknown dangers on that plain, for he was sure the women were spirits. They had told him there was no death in their country, nor was there any night; the sun shone always.

He said, "When the dark rolls away from our country it does not go into theirs, which is where Yhi, our sun, being a woman, goes to rest. The dark just rolls itself under the earth until it is time to come back here. We shall do well to smoke ourselves before we go out of the darkness on to that plain."

Wurrunna arranged that he would go round to the other side of the plain and make another fire to smoke them directly they came away, so that no evil would cling to them and be carried back to their tribe. And in case they were staying too long, he had a plan for warning them to leave.

He would take his two brothers with him. By his magic, for he was a great wirrinun, or clever man, he could turn them into two large water birds. As there were no birds on the lake they would quickly be noticed. As soon as he had the smoke fire ready he would send his brothers swimming opposite the women's camp. Seeing them, the women would in their wonder forget the men, who were to go onto the plain and get what they wanted.

He told every man to take an animal with him, and, should the women interfere, to let the animal go. There were no animals on the plain, and the women's attention would be taken off again. Then the men must hasten to make their escape