Article 5: The Courage of Muskrat and Wolf

Freddie Barkman

           The world came into being when the Creator created the seas, lakes, and the land, which is also known as Turtle Island. When the new world was formed, he also created all living beings that inhabit the Sea and on the land. With all what he created he needed someone to take care of all his animals while he was in the spiritual world, so he called upon an honorable and mysterious being named Wesakechak. And when he showed up, the Creator said, “I will offer you great powers if you watch over my animals in return. You are responsible for all the animals, and you are to keep them safe and do not let them fight each other.” Wesakechak bowed his head with honor and replied, “I will not disappoint you.”

           The story of Wesakechak began when the entire Earth was flooded. Wesakechak built a raft with a couple of small animals on board such as the otter, the beaver, and the muskrat. After so many days of drifting, without spotting any land, he planned to make the land. However, the land could not be made instantly without the Earth because, the Earth was beneath the depths of water, he looked at the three animals on board and thought to himself, if I want Earth, I’ll have to send one of the animals to fetch it for me. He must jump into the deep water and clutch Earth from the bottom.

           Wesakechak spoke to the animals and presented his plans among the three animals. He said, “if we are to survive, one of you will have to reach the mud deep down at the bottom of the water.” Looking at one another, the animals nodded their heads in agreement to his plan, otherwise no one would survive. The first animal to challenge the risk was the beaver. The beaver was confident and assured himself, and said, “I am the strongest swimmer here.” Everyone on the raft agreed the beaver would go first, including Wesakechak. The other two animals agreed to the beaver’s proposal because the beaver is respected, and everyone knew how hard the beaver worked. The beaver was considered skillful and very productive when it comes to work. The beaver works hard, alone, and he accomplishes his goals quickly and effective.

           Wesakechak and the animals gathered around the raft as the beaver was prepared to dive down. The beaver dove and swam straight down and saw the bottom, but the dirt was too far down, and he was running out of breath. The beaver came back up the surface and he was struggling to breath in the air on the raft. The beaver nearly drowned, and he was so exhausted, and it took him awhile to regain his strength. When he did, he said, “the water is too deep, and I can’t reach the bottom.” He complained, “I was out of breath, and I couldn’t resist without air any longer. I had no choice but to come back up.” The otter and the muskrat looked at each other and they knew it was going to be a challenge because the beaver could not accomplish the task.

           The next animal to attempt the challenge was the otter. He said, “I am bigger and slimmer than the beaver.” The otter’s tail was almost the same length of his entire body. The otter was confident his tail would get him to the bottom of the water and grab a piece of the Earth. He had a long tail that can guide him straight to the bottom. He was very confident that he would get the job done.

           The otter told Wesakechak that he was confident that he could grab a piece of Earth from the bottom of the water. The otter was known to the other swimmers in the raft that he was a very strong mystical animal and shares the thoughtfulness with all the other animals. The otter said, “I will make the lives of people well, seek happiness and peace in their surroundings, and find a place for them”. He also promised to the other animals, “when I complete my task and return to the surface, I will be more affectionate and loyal to you and the people.”

           The otter dove down with his heavy silk fur and quickly disappeared into the water.  Likewise, the beaver and the otter stayed underwater for a long time. But the otter stayed in the water much longer than the beaver. The otter finally surfaced and came on board the raft exhausted. He told everyone “The water is too deep, and I couldn’t continue because it was getting dangerous.” But he then said, “Things that appear normal under water are not actually the way we see it.” The Earth seemed reachable and yet, the task of grabbing a piece of the Earth cannot be accomplished.

           Next in line to attempt the impossible task was the muskrat. Wesakechak, the beaver, and the otter looked at the little rodent and started to laugh and ridicule him for his little size. The muskrat was very small compared to the beaver and the otter. He had a round body with a long hairless black tail that resembled that of a rat, and he looked scruffy. He also had webbed feet at the back like the beaver and the otter. But his front paws were so small compared to the other swimmers, it was questionable to the animals if he could grab enough Earth if he reached the bottom of the water. His claws were sharp, and he used them mostly for digging and eating. Then Wesakechak had a pep talk with the muskrat for encouragement. Wesakechak told him, “If you accomplish this mission, you will bare many children”. The little muskrat was a shy animal with not much to say but he was mindful. He didn’t really socialize with anyone, but he is loyal to the family.

           The little muskrat dove down into the water in the same way as the beaver and the otter.  The animals were still giggling, and they had their doubts about the little rodent. The beaver told the otter, “The little guy is not going to make it to the bottom. He’s too small and weak to reach the bottom and grab the dirt.” The otter laughed and said, “Poor muskrat doesn’t stand a chance.” After so many days and nights of parting, Wesakechak and the animals were getting worried for taking so long. They were starting to believe that the muskrat had drowned. Each animal took turns keeping a watch to see if there were any signs of him. At this point, the animals felt guilty and regretful for calling the muskrat down and how they ridiculed him. They knew it would be the last thing the muskrat would ever hear before departing this world. The beaver said, “I shouldn’t have been so hard on him.” The otter didn’t say anything because he felt the same as he stared back at the water. They felt bad about the little muskrat.

           Time passed relentlessly of waiting, everyone on the raft thought the muskrat had died, and they started looking for his little body. They looked into the water to see whether it was floating below the water. Suddenly, there appeared small bubbles surfacing on top of the water. Followed by the small bubbles, appeared a figure of a little furry animal. To their amazement, it was the muskrat resurfacing. Wesakechak, the beaver, and the otter were jumping around with excitement. They were all happy to see the muskrat back. They pulled him up the raft. The muskrat’s eyes were closed, and his mouth was wide open. He did not seem to be breathing at all and there was no trace of Earth on him.

           Wesakechak and the animals crowded around the little muskrat, and they did not know what to do with the almost dying muskrat. To their disbelief, the muskrat started coughing out water as he slowly rolled to his side. The beaver started slapping his flat tail on the muskrats back to try and help him cough out the water in his lungs. The animals were quite frantic pacing back and forth on the raft hoping the muskrat would recover and come to his senses. The muskrat had gained consciousness, but he was confused for a moment staring at Wesakechak, the beaver, and the muskrat. He almost died but they were glad to see him alive. The little muskrat opened his little paws and there he held a piece of mud. Wesakechak and the animals were more ecstatic to see the mud on the muskrat’s paw. At the same moment the beaver and the otter asked, “How did you do that?” The muskrat just smiled back at the two animals. This was a huge sacrifice from such a small animal. At that moment Wesakechak promised his special gift to the muskrat and said, “You shall bare many children.” It was an honour to receive such a gift for such a brave little animal. The little animal smiled at Wesakechak and it was obvious that he was very proud of himself.

           Hastily, Wesakechak took the piece of mud from the muskrat and put it on his hand and started to blow on it. As he was blowing the mud, the mud started to grow, multiply, and stretch out further to the direction he was blowing to. The clay of the rich soil started to develop across the young Earth, stretching as far as anybody could see. Somehow, Wesakechak’s mystical powers shaped the land and created layers of the crust. That was how the Earth was formed and how spectacular it was to see as the solid forms of land and water meet to make which seemed to be like Heaven.

           Wesakechak and his swimming animals landed along the side of the Earth’s shores. Wesakechak continued to expand his creation and transformation of nonlife into life’s natural existence of other animals and creatures. At first, when the mud was formed beyond the eye could see, the grass started to grow shortly after, then the trees. The process of creation of life started from the smallest living organisms to bigger animals such as the giraffes and elephants. All different kinds of animals and creatures started to appear on the Earth.

           Yet, Wesakechak was not satisfied. He thought, it would be best for the animals to spread to different areas on Earth so they can live in their own territories. But he was uncertain of how much the Earth would grow. Wasakechak called up a big assembly with all the animals and he voiced his concerns. He said to them, “I will put you all into different parts of the Earth, and you will survive where I place you. You will be responsible to care for your family.”

           The animals were quite astonished, they looked at one another and agreed that Wesakechak had a wonderful idea. They all talked amongst themselves and wondered how it would be possible to live in different environments. The wolf didn’t have any issues staying where he was at, he was comfortable in that environment. Meanwhile, when the animals were talking to one another, the elephant stood up and said, “I wouldn’t be able to survive here in this cold weather.” A few animals agreed that it was too cold for them to survive as well. The wolf got up and said, “Hey listen, if anyone doesn’t like it here you are free to leave.” There were questions of uncertain arrangements for location and the size of the Earth. The animal’s main question was, “Is this even possible? How are we to survive if we separate? Who is going to find the areas you are speaking of?”

           The next day, Wesakechak called another meeting. He told the animals, “Since we have no idea how big the Earth is I will ask one of you to go around it.” The horse volunteered and said, “I will go around the Earth and when I arrive, I will tell you how big the Earth is.” The horse came back days later exhausted and could not complete the task. Then the lion stepped up and said, “I can complete the task of going around the Earth and find out how big it is.” The lion came back to the meeting grounds weeks later and said, “It was frightening and too dangerous for me to continue.” All the animals volunteered but all failed the challenge. Finally, the cheetah stepped up and said, “I can run faster than any of you, so I will go.” So, the cheetah took off running with his strong hind legs, leaving the dust behind him. He ran so fast that nobody could see him anymore. He disappeared quickly. Hours later, the cheetah came back panting and wheezing. He said, “I ran as fast as I could, but the Earth seems endless, I was getting so tired, and I had to return back.”  He was disappointed and laid down in the shade with shame.

           Then a wolf showed up inviting himself to the challenge. That evening the wolf had prepared himself by stretching, ate plenty of food, and made sure his fur coat was nice and sturdy for the journey ahead. He didn’t say much to anybody. The wolf was the most respected animal in this meeting. He was a very powerful animal. Everyone in the meeting thought it was a good idea for the wolf to take on the challenge and to find out how big the Earth was. He seemed to have his own bad features, darkness, and hostile at times, but he is also smart, very protective, and curious.

           That same evening, the animals gathered around to see him off. He trotted along the side of the shore silently and drifted into the woods. The wolf was gone for days, and the animals thought something bad might have happened to him. Wesakechak and the animals waited for him for days and nights. Years later, Wesakechak and the animals were already sure that the wolf had lost his way, or even worse, lost his life in the process of finding out how big the Earth was. One day, there was a grey figure coming out from the woods from a distance away. The animals stared at it with confusion because they haven’t seen this animal in their territory before. The bear asked, “What is that coming out from the woods?” As the strange animal came closer, they finally recognized that it was the wolf that’s been away for years.

           Wesakechak greeted the wolf with honor and had welcomed him on his arrival home. Wesakechak said to the wolf, “I am glad you made it home.” But somehow, the wolf looked different than when he started his journey. He had a different dark coloured coat when he left. But when he returned his fur was long, grey, and white. Wesakechak and the wolf walked away from the rest of the animals to discuss about the wolfs journey in private. During their private conversation, the wolf gave Wesakechak an idea of how big the Earth was. The wolf went around the Earth, and it took him many years to return. That was the reason why the wolf’s coat changed.

            Today, we see wolves with white, black, and grey fur to remind us that his journey was long. He contributed his task with important responsibility. The wolf reminds us of his courage and humbleness. His howling cries and echoes through the forest and it can be heard for miles. The wolves howling reminds us that they are still present, and it means they are communicating with one wolf to another. He was one of the animals chosen to stay with his mate for a lifetime and to continue with his responsibilities, to be compassionate and nurture his family. Like many of us, wolves form friendships and they succeed by cooperation. They struggle when they are alone, like us, the wolves need each other. We learn from the wolf to be kind and accept one another.

           The wolf was also given the gift to be supportive and unite with each other, including the gift to share the knowledge to their young. When the wolf pups become older and experienced, they are taught by their parents the hunting tactics and uphold a culture uniqueness to the rest of the wolves.

As for the muskrat, Wesakechak’s gift remains true that he shall bear many children. We are reminded of his impossible accomplishment when we see a muskrat swimming along the side of the river. They exist in great mass, more than any animal in the world. The little muskrat will be with us indefinitely for what he did many, many years ago when the Earth was covered with water. The muskrat taught us not to underestimate one another based on appearances and to respect each other.

Authors’ Bio: Freddie Barkman is from a remote community of an island of Garden Hill First Nation, Manitoba. His first language is Oji-Cree Island Lake dialect, and he has two children. A son who is thirteen years of age and a daughter that is eight. Freddie is currently attending the University College of the North and will be completing his Bachelor of Arts program in April 2022. Freddie’s major is Aboriginal and Northern Studies and minors in Sociology. After completing his program, he wants to take time off to take care of his family by helping raise his children but will pursue the Bachelor of Education program in the near future. He hopes one day he will teach Aboriginal studies in his community so that students can learn about the history and the stories of Aboriginal people.

Instructor Remarks: University College of the North acknowledges that its campuses in The Pas and Thompson are located in Treaty No. 5 territory; along with regional centers, these are the traditional territories for many Indigenous peoples whose relationship to the land creates a rich heritage for our northern learning community. Thompson City is known as wolf capital of the world. Freddie Barkman’s “The Courage of Muskrat and Wolf” helps the readers understand why wolf holds so much respect from Indigenous people. He also carries his oral tradition to have the creation story told in his own way. We appreciate the opportunity to read and listen to his version of the creation story of Turtle Island—Dr. Ying Kong.