I really didn't know much about the emu... I did some research and in doing so learned many new things. The emu is prominent in Aboriginal mythology and in some accounts emus are the seven sisters who became the Pleiades. In the Dreamtime, emus were sky-birds and never touched the Earth, then once one of them swooped close to the Earth and saw that people were living there. On another occasion, she saw them dancing and singing., Emu could restrain herself no longer and for the first time ever landed upon the Earth and found herself among a group of native companions. She asked them if she too might live on the Earth. One of the native companions quickly hid her wings behind her back and told emu that she could never live on the Earth because her huge wings would get in the way. they had to be cut off. Emu agreed, but when she was wingless, the native companion spread her own wings and flew off with her tribe, all laughing at the trick they had played on her. Kookaburra perched on a nearby tree also laughed at the trick and, when he remembers, continues to laugh at it to this day. Emu adjusted to living on the Earth, however, and when the breeding season came built a huge nest which she filled with eggs and sat on. One day the native companion was out with her children and saw the emu sitting on her eggs. She decided to play another trick on her. She quickly hid her brood, except for one chick, went up to Emu and greeted her. The emu, who was somewhat stupid, bore her no malice, as she had grown quite used to living on the Earth. Native Companion saw the huge pile of eggs and declared what a worry it was to have so many children all at once. She pointed to her one chick and said that it was much easier with a single chold to look after. She suggested that Emu break all her eggs except for one and the foolish bird followed her advice. Gnawdenoorte, son of the All-Father, was watching and decided to punish the native companion. He caused her long and graceful neck to become crooked and wrinkled and her sweet beginning voice to become a harsh croak. From then on, the native companion could only lay one or two eggs. This made her very bitter towards Emu, though it had been her own fault.. In the next breeding season she came to Emu, but with her hideous wrinkled neck and harsh voice, she had lost the power to persuade Emu to do anything. So Native Companion then resorted to violence. She sprang over the emu and into her nest where she began smashing the eggs. Emu rushed at her, but without wings could not catch her. Native Companion simply flew uip whenever the Emu came close. Finally, she held Emu's last egg in her claw as she flew up and threw it high into the air, hoping that it would smash when it fell. However it went up and up and into the sky world, where it fell onto a huge pile of wood which Gnawdenoorte had piled up there. the collision was so great that the wood burst into flame and the whole world was flooded with light. Gnawdenoorte saw how much better the world was with light, so each day he lights up another pile of wood. *Australian Mythology by Jane Resture* Taken in Aldergrove at the GVZ, B.C.