The Creek Flood Myth and the Dog's Sacrifice (Creek)
The Muscogee Creek tell a flood story in which the Great Flood covered the entire earth. As the waters rose, the people prayed to the Creator for deliverance. A great dog appeared and offered to sacrifice himself by lying across a creek to dam the water. The dog's noble self-sacrifice allowed the people to cross to higher ground. In gratitude and mourning, the Creator set the dog's spirit in the sky, where it became a constellation. To this day, the Creek honor dogs for their loyalty and self-sacrifice. The myth shares elements with flood stories from many other Native American tribes but is d