ONCE THERE was a tribe of people known as the Fire Keepers. They lived isolated from all other humans on a windy mountain surrounded by a dense forest. The Fire Keepers were stingy and kept all the fire to themselves. Suspicious of strangers, they turned all the visitors away, living in constant fear that someone would take some of their precious fire. Each fall, as the wheel of the year turned farther and farther away from the sun, the days grew shorter and colder. The weakening sun did not have the strength to fully warm the earth before retiring again to its bed in the west. This was when the people without fire suffered the most. Having long since given up attempts to get fire from the Fire Keepers, they accepted their fate and huddled together through the long nights, trying to keep warm.

One morning a young boy was out gathering water. Despite the brilliant sun, the day was bone-chilling cold and windy. As the child was scooping water from the river, he heard coughing and sputtering coming from upstream. Glancing over, he saw a frightened rabbit trying to scramble up a log that was lodged against some rocks. The rabbit soon tired and let go, floating downstream towards the little boy. Knowing – yet not knowing – that this was no ordinary rabbit, the child pulled the rabbit from the freezing water and gathered it in his arms. He placed the miserable creature beneath his robe. Grabbing his bucket of water, he raced back to his home, a little house of ice and snow.

Once inside, he placed the rabbit is a deer hide sleeping skin to keep him warm. Soon the rabbit’s wet fur began to dry and it stopped shivering. The child fed the rabbit some stems he had gathered from beneath the snow. The next day, the grateful rabbit hopped about as if nothing had happened to it and it was anxious to go back outside. Before it left however, it surprised the family members who gathered for their mid-day meal and suddenly spoke to them.

People of the ice-house, thank you for taking me in and nursing me back to health. The rabbit then nuzzled the little boy, giving him a special thanks for saving him from the freezing torrents of the stream. As you know, I am Rabbit, the trickster, imbued with special powers. In gratitude for saving me, I will try to get some fire from the Fire Keepers so that you and your family no longer have to suffer in the freezing weather anymore. With that said, Rabbit left them alone to finish their meal.

Once he reached the entrance to the Fire Keepers’ village Rabbit disguised himself as a puppy that had porcupine quills in its muzzle. You see dogs were the Fire Keepers one weakness and they loved them. Especially cute fuzzy puppies. Dogs were their best friends and helped them guard the sacred fire. Rabbit’s plan worked. The guard took pity on him, and pulled out the quills. Rabbit-pup wagged his tail and licked the face of his new friend. Rabbit-pup was taken as the special pet of the very same guard who had pulled the quills from his muzzle. Now it was custom in the village to honor all those who kept guard of the sacred fire be it human or dog. When Quill as the guard had named Rabbit was a little older they held a ceremony, Quill had to wear a feathered headdress and stand as close to the fire as he dared. Unknown to anyone Quill had made his own feathered headdress and coated it with resin. Moments before the ceremony, when no one was looking he had switched the headdress with the one they had given him for the one he had made. As Quill stood close to the fire he bowed his head and suddenly the headdress caught fire. With lightening speed, Quill ran between the startled villagers’ legs and out into the night. He raced down the mountain, the dogs and villagers following close behind him.

Eventually, Rabbit delivered the fire to the ice-house people as promised and they shared the fire with all the peoples of the Earth. Ever since that time, people have honored the gradual return of light and warmth. This honoring not only celebrates the Earth’s turning toward the Sun, but it also recalls the brave rabbits heroic feat of bringing fire to the people. And since rabbit as an animal carried the fire, humans should remember to respect them, even the smallest ones. Because of Rabbit we can be sure that even on the coldest of days, you know the days when it seems that you could shed a tear and it would freeze to your face that we can be warm with the fire that Rabbit fought so hard to get.