Rona and the Moon (retold by Alecia)

A long time ago in a Maori village Marama the moon was shining brightly, but Rona’s children couldn’t sleep.
“Rona, Rona please can you get us some water?” they begged.

Rona took the taha and headed off into the dark, still, scary forest. It was a bumpy way but Marama’s bright light helped her way through the dark, still, scary forest.

But soon Marama hid behind a dark, fluffy cloud. Rona couldn’t see the bumpy path. Then something terrible happened! Rona tripped on a root of a ngaio tree.

“Oh you stupid silly moon see what you have made me do, you’ve made me trip!” she yelled.

But then Marama said, “Don’t you talk to me like that.”
With a loud voice Rona shouted, “I can say what ever I want you silly old moon!”

But suddenly Marama grabbed hold of Rona. Rona held on tightly to the ngaio tree. She held on tightly, but Marama was too strong. Marama pulled so hard the ngaio tree came right off the ground.
Marama pulled Rona up into the sky.

Rona’s children waited and waited and waited, for their lost mother to come back with the fresh water.

But then Rona called to her children,” Tamariki tamariki, I’m up here.”
The children looked up.

Rona is still up there in the sky with Marama and Rona is still holds the ngaio tree with one hand and the taha with the other.

Sometimes Rona thinks about how nasty she was to Marama and thinks how her poor lonely children will feel right now, how her children are hungry and thirsty, how they are separated from her and what they will be doing right now.