I'm already tired of me

Let's talk about something more interesting? Good...I may just have to change the whole focus of this blog. Then again, I guess the fact that it rambles and has no particular focus is more my style. I mean, I already have one poem and two little random ramblings. Let's talk about things that amaze me...

The first in this particular series is Arch Rock on Mackinac Island, Michigan.
I love all things mythical and legends. I'm fascinated by the imagination of people and the stories they told to try to make sense of their own existence. I'm a bit strange, I know. This is why I was drawn to Arch Rock and it's story when I was going through a travel magazine today.

Arch Rock is a formation 146 feet above the shore, which formed over thousands of years of erosion. Wind and water wore away the soft rock, leaving the arch which spans fifty feet at its widest point. From certain angles, it appears as if the arch is suspended in the air.

But the story is the Ojibwe Indian's story of how the formation was created. From my issue of Budget Traveler, the story is that the Indians in the area believed that the Great Creator "blew life into the world through the hole."

I also found a story on Indians.org, which made me want to find more. Sadly, the information on this legend is quite scarce. I wish I could find more, but here is what Indians.org had to say about it.

Many winters ago, the sun would disappear into an immense hole somewhere in the distant west, just as the stars came out. A chief of the Ottawa nation committed a shameful act and angered the Master of Life. In punishment, he sent a powerful wind upon the earth and the hills trembled and the waters roared. This lasted a whole day and even the sun was disturbed. It shot up through the sky until it stood frozen in the center, shocked by the chief's actions. All the people were shocked and watched the sun as it turned to the color of blood. Then, it fell from the sky and with a terrifying noise, struck the shore on Mackinac Island. When the people dared to look again, they saw that the rocks had been made into an arch that hung high above the lake. The sun had fallen through the opening in the rock and plunged below the surface of the earth. It came out the next day from the east and made its usual journey. To this day, the Ottawa people do not walk across the arch and few even go near it.

Absolutely fascinating. I love this story and the place itself looks beautiful. I hope you enjoyed that little story. =]

Photo 1
Photo 2 and Mackinac State Historic Parks
Indians.org