Wiki Qwicki = edit (write) save link

The Beginning
In the beginning there was nothing. Only water, darkness and The Raven.

He flew through the darkness with a bag that hung around his neck. He had been flying for a long time, and was starting to get tired. So while he flew, he removed a rock from his bag and threw it into the sea. This rock became the first land. He sat down upon this land to rest, while resting he took other rocks from his sack and threw them into the water. Thus The Raven made the land.

Rested, The Raven picked up his bag and continued to fly. After a while he became tired, so he sat on a rock and took more items from his bag. He removed the fir, the pine, the spruce, the redwood and all the trees of the world. He also removed the huckleberry bush, the wild strawberry, the grass and all of the plants of the world, including the plants of the sea. These things he scattered across the land and the water, so that they may grow.

Again The Raven took his pouch around his neck and flew through the darkness. And again The Raven became tired so that he sat upon a rock. This time he removed all the animals of the world. The wolf, the eagle, the salmon, the bear, the dear, and all the animals of the land and of the sea.

The Raven looked around him at the world he had made, it was a good world, every one was peaceful and happy. But before he flew off he looked into his pouch and saw that there was one thing left. So he removed man from the bag and placed him upon the earth.

(Mythology told by the people of the West Coast of North America)



The Raven and the Wolf have an often symbiotic relationship - when the wolf hunts you will always find the raven present, but Raven is also known to lead Wolf to prey - a wonderful relationship where both can (usually) end up getting their bellies filled! The way in which Raven built his 'community' in The Beginning, and the co-operation that still continues amongst that community, has a wiki ring to it - "edit - save - link" - as noted in the best video I've come across so far in connection with this Web 2.0 experience. There are some useful and interesting library wikis, especially the ones listing subject guides and new books. You could spend so much time just exploring these wikis, you recognize how great it would be to have a well resourced library IT department to create these for us. Not forgetting the possibilities of library training wikis, either! Another extension of the already co-operative community that exists amongst libraries and librarians? Power to us all, and a reminder of The Wiki Prayer

Please, grant me the serenity to accept the pages I cannot edit,

The courage to edit the pages I can,

And the wisdom to know the difference