Creation Myths

Myself, Littleman and Electra (our cat) are having a snack in the kitchen.

Littleman: "Where did the first people come from?"

Me: "You mean the very first people anywhere?"

Littleman: "Yeah."

Me: "That's a good question." I'm impressed- I guess he's figured out that people come from people, so the first people present a bit of a puzzle. It's the old 'chicken and egg' conundrum. "No one knows for sure", I tell him, "but there are a lot of good ideas."

Littleman: "Like what?"

Me: "Well, there's evolution, for instance. One idea is that before people, there were other animals on Earth- like monkeys. Over time, the monkeys changed little bit by little bit, becoming more and more like people. Eventually, after a really long time, the monkeys were more like people than monkeys. Those were the first people."

Littleman: Thinks about this, then nods. "Cool."

Me: "There are other ways of looking at it, though. You see, people have been trying to answer that question for a really long time. So over the years, different stories have been made up to help explain where the first people came from. A story that explains where people came from, and how the Earth was made, is called a 'creation myth'. Just about every religion on Earth has it's own idea of where we came from- it's own creation myth. The Christian religion believes that God made the first people. He made a man and a woman, named Adam and Eve, and they were the first people."

Littleman: Thinks some more. Nods again. "Oh." He seems satisfied with my explanation. "Well", he decides, "I think the first people were made by a bear."

Me: (a little stunned, then a little impressed) "That's a good creation myth."

Littleman: "Yep. But Electra thinks the first people were made by a cat."