Raven’s Wife Gains a Heart

Raven made himself a wife, and loved her dearly. And she was happy with him, though she could not love him, for she had no heart.

Soon Raven’s wife grew big-bellied. “Why does this happen?” she asked.

“You will bear me a son,” Raven said, “and you make me glad.”

“Then I am glad too.” Said his wife. But without a heart, she felt very little.

In time, Raven’s wife was gathering cattails beside the river, when her baby was born. But without a heart, Raven’s wife didn’t know what to do with a baby. She set him in her cattail basket, and continued her work.  Soon, the baby began to wriggle and rock. He rocked the basket over, and fell into the river. With a happy gurgle he became a fish and swam away. When Raven’s wife returned, all she found was a few silver scales.

She searched far and wide, but her son could not be found. She searched until she came to a place where the river flowed into the forest. As she walked, she looked up, and Wolf was walking beside her.

“What are you searching for?”

“My son.”

“Call him in your heart. He will come.”

“But I have no heart.”

“Then you must make one.”  Wolf told her.

So Raven’s wife took up mud from the bank of the river. Into it she placed a feather from her husband’s wing, and scales her son had left. Into it she placed a bead of cedar sap, and a nugget of copper. Wolf added a drop of blood. Then she placed the heart within her chest.

Raven’s wife was filled with pain. “Why do I hurt?”

“You are lonely for your son,” said Wolf, “that is why you hurt. You must call him.”

Raven’s wife wept into the river, crying for her son. And he came swimming to her.

“I am Salmon,” said the little boy, “Who are you?”

“I am Fog Over Water,” said Raven’s wife, “I am your mother.” And she lifted him up and carried him home.

In time Salmon became a man and a great leader. He learned cunning from his father and love from his mother.  Raven pledged his friendship to Wolf in gratitude for her help, and Salmon learned tenacity from Wolf as well. He has many thousands in his tribe. And each year, he comes to see his mother, swimming back from the sea, his tribe in his wake.

To this day salmon swim up river to spawn and to feed us all, following First Salmon.

To this day, when the fish die we return their skeletons to the water, and Fog-Over-Water restores them to life in her son’s tribe. 

May it always be so.

*This is a retelling from a number of different sources, including  Theadora Goss’s poem and the

Lhaq' temish story of Salmon Woman.