Rona and the Moon- Retelling of the Story

On a bush-clad hill above a peaceful valley was the home Rona shared together
with her husband and children. At night they would listen to the sounds of the
valley: a family of kiwis whitening to each other in a high pitched voice, the sound
of Tawhirimatea and many other beautiful natural sounds.

Rona and her family would watch the night sky as it became bejewelled in twinkling
stars. They always loved to gaze at Marama, the moon. Marama, enchantress of
the nights, as she walked the sky. Life at Rona's was peaceful and very good.

One night when her children were asleep, Rona was getting ready to
lay on her mat when her husband Tiroha wanted a drink of water so he
went down to the clashbashes, but they were all empty. What a fit Tiroha threw.
His impatient yells shattered the night, isn’t it a woman's job to fill the
clashbashes? He said. He roared and complained, Rona couldn’t take it grabbing
one empty clashbash she headed down to the creek.

Mattering under her breath, “Am I the only one in the house capable of
carrying water?”. Marama gazed quietly down from her high vantage point.
Rona’s path was washed with the moonlight as Rona tramped down the path.
Down past the kahikatea grove the world went dark. A great black cloud had
moved across the moon’s face. Rona trudged on the pitch blackness, feeling
sorry for herself.

The next thing she knew, her foot got caught in a root and down she fell,
flat on her face. The clashbash flew from her hand and smashed into the ground.
That was the final straw. Up Rona got shaking her fist at the moon, cursing with
all her might. Rona said some nasty things which were the rudest and the worst
insult you could say to anyone.

High above Marama heard Rona’s curse and chose to feel insulted.
Down out of the sky she plunged. She took Rona by the waist and pulled.
Terrified Rona grabbed onto a nearby tree trying to hold on as tight. The moon
tugged and pulled, Rona was begging to be let go but her pleas fell on deaf ears.
Next thing she knew was she was in the home of Marama, the next morning her
husband and kids tried to look for her but she was nowhere to be found.
Rona screamed from the moon and her kids and husband heard her, Rona’s kids
were begging for their mother to come back, what do you know she never did.