Is Dakota, my corn snake, giving you nightmares?

This is a synthesis of Cherokee stories told to James Mooney in the late 1800s, primarily by Ayúnini ("Swimmer"), a Cherokee storyteller.

🌽 The Story of Corn and Medicine

In the beginning, the world was all water and darkness. Animals lived above the sky but moved to earth when it was formed from mud brought up by the Water-beetle. The soft earth dried over time, shaped into valleys and mountains by Buzzard's wings. When the land was ready, animals and humans came to live there.

Some animals set the sun in the sky and stayed awake for seven nights, granting owls and other enduring animals the power to hunt at night. Similarly, evergreen trees gained the ability to stay green year-round.

Among the first humans were Kanáti ("The Lucky Hunter") and Selu ("Corn"), who had a son. They also adopted a "Wild Boy" born from game blood. The boys discovered Kanáti’s secret cave of animals and accidentally released all the game, forcing humans to hunt ever since.

When Selu’s secret for creating corn and beans was revealed—she produced them by rubbing her body—she and Kanáti knew they would die. Before her death, Selu instructed the boys to drag her body around a circle in front of their house seven times and then across the soil inside the circle. This act would bring forth a crop of corn. The boys, however, only partially followed her instructions, dragging her body twice and clearing just a few spots. As a result, corn only grows in specific places and requires cultivation. Still, the boys stayed awake all night, and by morning, corn had grown. To this day, it takes months to grow, symbolizing the lost ease of life.

As humans multiplied and harmed animals, the animals retaliated. Deer sent rheumatism to hunters who killed without asking for pardon. The Little Deer visits bloodstains to ensure hunters have prayed. If not, it cripples them with disease. Snakes resolved to plague humans with nightmares, and birds and insects created various illnesses. To balance this, plants offered remedies, introducing medicine to counteract the animals' revenge and help humanity survive.

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Lindworm (2007)

🐉The Lindwurm of Germanic mythology and the Horned Serpent of North American indigenous traditions are striking examples of how cultures around the world have woven snake-like creatures with supernatural powers into their myths. Despite vast geographical distances, these beings share remarkable similarities in their depictions and symbolic roles.

🐲 Both creatures are described as elongated, serpent-like beings, often adorned with horns—a marker of their otherworldly power. Both are sometimes depicted with legs or wings, while the Horned Serpent is known for its glowing scales and close association with water. Both act as guardians of sacred sites, water sources, or treasures, embodying a balance between power and vulnerability.

🎯 A notable shared feature is their weakness: in European myths, the Lindwurm is often slain by targeting an unprotected scale, whereas the Horned Serpent’s "7th spot" is a physical weak point housing vital organs. This vulnerability often becomes the key to a hero’s victory.

🐍 Similar snake-like beings appear in other cultures: the Naga in India, Chinese dragons, and the Babylonian Musḫuššu all share associations with water and roles as guardians or intermediaries between worlds.

🦕🐋🐍 The similarities between these myths are likely no coincidence. Fossils of large dinosaurs or marine reptiles may have inspired the idea of massive, serpent-like creatures with horns or wings. Additionally, observations of snakes and lizards in nature contributed to these creatures’ elevation as mythical symbols. Their duality—representing both life-giving and destructive forces—reflects universal human experiences.

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Snakes become milky a few days before shedding, called "blue phase". This is because a fluid accumulates between the old and new skin, separating them. But why do the eyes also turn cloudy? This is because, unlike leopard geckos, snakes do not have eyelids. Instead, they have a spectacle scale covering each of their eyes.

Today, 4 days after this photo, Dakota has shed his skin and is now climbing around looking for the white mice he is so convinced of.

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Dakota, nine years ago today. Dakota was almost 3 and I was 29. Dakota hasn't changed much, but I'm different now. I find that time can be really confusing. Nine years isn't really a lot, but somehow it is.

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Dakota is the only one of my animal roommates who would most likely never snap or bite. But because he's a snake, people are afraid. A 2008 study showed that the sight of a snake silhouette triggers stress in babies as young as 8 to 14 months old. So it's not something learned, but innate. Other studies have confirmed similar reactions in non-human primates. But the stress reaction does not automatically lead to a fear of snakes. As early as the 1980s, it was recognized that rhesus monkeys only react fearfully to snakes after they have observed it in other monkeys. It was an advantage for our ancestors to be able to recognize a snake quickly and react immediately. For one thing, venomous snakes pose a danger, and for another, our ancestors were also natural prey for giant snakes. But Dakota is just a harmless corn snake that strangles its prey.😇

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A final prayer whispered as darkness consumes.

(I don't really feed my snake live prey)

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✨️ Once every five to six weeks it's time for the ultimate skin care routine. Dakota relies on a full body exfoliation. ✨️

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Watch out! 🐍

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My corn snake Dakota is simply the best 😁

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Dakota's hobbies: Snaking, climbing, digging, hiding.

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