Kuaka (how Kuaka became a bird)

Description

Tagai and his blind brother Kang set out from Mabuiag Island (Torres Strait) in their canoe one day. They had their sister Kuaka on board with them. She made a nuisance of herself by moving from stern to bow and from bow to stern, never sitting still and forever calling her own name “Kuaka! Kuaka! Kuaka! Her fidgety behaviour made Tagai very angry. “Be quiet! Sit still!” he ordered at the same time striking the poling stick against the side of the canoe. Kuaka obeyed for a while and then she became restless again. “Stop it!” shouted Tagai, intensely irritated by then.

But Kuaka, seemingly, could not. Tagai emptied every one of the coconut shell water containers on board the canoe. A short time afterwards he said to his sister “you and I will go ashore at Badu for water”. Tagai and Kuaka carried all the water vessels to a pool in the scrub, filling some and taking them back to the canoe, leaving behind those that were still empty. No sooner had they reached the canoe however, then Tagai sent Kuaka back to complete the task by herself. She had not gone far when he pulled the canoe out from the shore. By the time Kuaka arrived back from the pool he was well out to sea.

“Come back” called Kuaka, “I am your sister”. “I will not have you on board the canoe. Stay where you are, Badu will be your home” replied Tagai. In vain Kuaka pleaded with Tagai to come back for her. She was still calling to him when the canoe disappeared from sight. Presently she changed into a brown bird (Friarbird). From that day on she spends her time flying from tree to tree, restlessly hopping and flitting about, calling her own name, over and over again. “Kuaka! Kuaka! Kuaka!”