How Skunk Got His Stink! 

By Matthew W.

A long time ago skunks did not stink. One day, Skunk was out walking when he saw Turtle going by. “Hello Skunk” said Turtle. Skunk thought he could play a trick on Turtle. Skunk said, “Hey Turtle! How are you?” “I’m ok,” said Turtle. “Where are you going?” asked Skunk. “I’m going for a drink,” replied Turtle. Then Skunk said, “Why don’t you go that way?” and Skunk pointed in another direction. “I heard that there is another pond in that direction.” “There is?”  Turtle responded. “Yup” answered Skunk. So Turtle started walking in the direction Skunk told him to go. When Turtle was out of earshot Skunk, muttered to himself “Even his brain is slow”. Later, Turtle was still walking. He finally he thought, “I’ve been tricked!”

Skunk was walking along and all of a sudden The Great Spirit came down from the sky right in front of him and said, “Why have you tricked Turtle, Skunk?” “I was just having some fun,” mumbled Skunk. “I don’t want excuses!” yelled The Great Spirit. “I want you to do four good deeds in one day to pay off the one bad deed done today. If you don’t, I’ll punish you.” Then The Great Spirit disappeared. Skunk thought about his choices and said to himself, “I better do these four good deeds.” And with that he ran off to do four good deeds. Later, Skunk met Buffalo. Buffalo was trying to reach something on a small cliff. “Hey Buffalo! What are you doing?” asked Skunk.” I’m trying to reach the sweet grass on this cliff,” said Buffalo. Skunk looked up and saw some sweet grass at the top of the cliff they were at the bottom of. Skunk thought that if he helped Buffalo it would count as a good deed.“I can go up there and get some of the sweet grass,” volunteered Skunk. “You would? Thank you Skunk!” said Buffalo. So Skunk then transformed himself into a bird. As a bird, he flew up the cliff, grabbed a big clump of the sweet grass and came back down to where Buffalo was waiting. He gave the sweet grass to Buffalo. “That’s one good deed… I think,” thought Skunk. Later Skunk was walking along and he saw Porcupine. Porcupine looked as if he had lost some of his quills! “Help me Skunk! Cried Porcupine. “My quills are falling out!” So Skunk quickly ran over to Porcupine and started to put Porcupine’s quills back into his back. “Thank you Skunk” said Porcupine. Then Porcupine walked away. “I hope that counted as a good deed, for my sake!”

            Skunk was walking along when he bumped into Turtle. “Hey watch where... Hey! I’ve been looking for you!” yelled Turtle. “I’m sorry I tricked you Turtle.” said Skunk. “Is there anything I can do for you?” Turtle said, “Well you could go get me some food.” And with that Skunk ran off to find some food for Turtle.

Skunk found some roots and berries and was just on his way to where Turtle was waiting when he saw a village. He dropped the roots and berries and went to get a closer look. Skunk then transformed into a tiny fly and buzzed around the village until he saw something cooking in a pot… the pot was filled with corn! Skunk then transformed himself into a human and was just about to grab the corn and run, when a village member came out of a longhouse and yelled “Hey! What are you doing with that corn? It’s for the ceremony!” Then he took the pot away. Skunk (still as a human) thought that he needed to get that corn; so then he transformed himself back into a fly and went buzzing around the village in search of the corn. Skunk spends about an hour searching the village for the corn. He almost got lost in one of the mazes that led in and out of the village, when he passed a longhouse and saw the village member guarding the corn beside him. So Skunk turned into a young maiden and walked into the longhouse and lied to the village member. “I think that corn needs more cooking. Let me take it and cook it some more.” Then the village member said “Ok, but watch out there is some guy that wants the corn all for himself.” Then Skunk walked away. When Skunk was at the village wall he transformed himself into an eagle and carried the pot over the wall. When he was back on the ground, he transformed himself back into a skunk and dragged the pot back to where Turtle was waiting. “What took you so long Skunk?” Turtle asked. “I got some really good food for us to eat!” said Skunk. “What did you get?” asked Turtle. “I got us...CORN!” Then Turtle asked, “Where did you get it?” “I found it and cooked it up for us.” Skunk lied. So for the rest of the afternoon they sat there and ate the corn that Skunk “found”.

          When Skunk and Turtle had finished the corn Turtle said “I want some water.” So Skunk went to the nearest water hole with the pot that had held the corn and filled the pot with water and walked back to where Turtle was waiting. They both started drinking the water. When Skunk was full he looked up at the sky and noticed that it was dark out and then it came to him, he had not done four good deeds in the day he was given. “Uh oh!” Then, out of thin air The Great Spirit appeared and said “Skunk you have not done the four good deeds I wanted you to do! Along with that you stole a whole pot of corn that was going to be used at a ceremony. For your punishment you will lose your transforming powers and I am going to make you smell so that all the animals will never come near you. All will smell you whenever you come near anyone. Then The Great Spirit disappeared. Then Skunk tried to transform into some thing… he couldn’t. Then the next thing he knew… he stunk!!!