Matty's Portfolio: The Woman and the Fox

A legendary Native American tale that has been passed down throughout the Inuit tribe for centuries: 

Once upon a time there was an old widowed woman named Sue. The elderly woman lived in a small cottage in the woods all by herself. Her husband and only son had passed away from a hunting accident almost twenty years ago. 

In order to keep herself occupied, Sue would take long walks around the forest every afternoon. During her walks, she would sing with the birds, swim laps in the river and gather berries and nuts to eat for her meals.

After Sue’s walk one afternoon, she turned the corner to head home and saw a small fox running from her house.

Sue's Cottage

“Hmmmm… that’s strange,” thought Sue. “I have never seen any foxes in these woods before.”

Not thinking much about it, Sue went home and fell asleep.

The next morning, she practiced her exact routine and entered the woods once again. When she returned home, the fox was asleep in her living room.

“What a cute little creature!” thought Sue. “I could use a friend in these lonesome woods.”

That night, Sue made a bed out of leaves for her new friend and went to bed.

The next morning, Sue woke up and her house looked completely different! All of the dishes were sparkling clean, the floor had been vacuumed, the toilet scrubbed, the light bulbs had been replaced and there was even fresh deer meat sitting on the table! Sue stood staring at her tiny cottage confused and in awe.

“Do you like what I did with the place?” asked a small voice from behind her. 

The Mysterious Fox

In shock, Sue slowly turned around and saw the small fox staring directly at her. Convinced she was sleep walking, the old woman gave herself a big pinch and realized it was not a dream.

“Who are you and how can you talk?” asked Sue.

“I am your son,” said the fox. “When I was killed by the hunters many years ago, a fox saved me and nurtured me back to life.”

The next moment, there was a huge bolt of light and the fox transformed into a small child. After a few seconds, the woman noticed that the little boy was wearing an old gray t-shirt, light blue jeans and a red baseball cap. Sue immediately recognized the little boy because he was wearing the exact same outfit her son had on the day he was killed in a hunting accident.

“Danny! It really is you!” screamed Sue.

“Yes, it is! I am here to protect you and promise to never go into the woods without you again, Mom,” said Danny.

Bibliography: My story idea came from "The Fox-Woman" in the Native American Marriage Tale Unit by Stith Thompson in 1929. 

Author's Note: I created my story after the original version of "The Fox Woman" by Stith Thompson. This story is a part of the traditional "Native American Marriage Tales" from the Inuit people. The original story was about a man who would leave his house to hunt every day. When he returned, his house was always cleaned and prepared for the evening. One day, the man saw a fox enter his house. When the man looked inside his window, the fox had transformed into a beautiful woman. The man and "woman" ended up staying together for a long time. For my story, I wanted to incorporate a fox that could transform into a human. I loved the idea of animals being able to do human actions and activities. Instead of making a man the main character, I decided to use an elderly woman who needed a friend. I decided to create a “plot-twist” by making the fox her son who had passed away in a hunting accident many years ago. I got this idea from the original story because the main character was a serious hunter. In the end, I wanted the fox to stay with the woman so she would never be alone and could catch up on lost time spent with her son.