Beautiful white flowers with hearts of gold floated on the surface of
the lily pond.

An Indian girl was paddling a canoe gently about among the lily pads.
She reached out to pick one of the flowers. Suddenly there appeared
before her a little man.

The little man sat upon a lily pad. He smiled at the girl and said,
"Listen, and I will tell you the story of the water lilies."

This is the story the little man told:

Once there was a star in the heavens, it shone more brightly than any of
the other stars. An Indian youth watched it for many nights. Each night
it seemed to move nearer to the earth.

One night the young man had a strange dream. In his dream a beautiful
maiden appeared before him and spoke to him. Her words were like music.
She said that she was the star that shone so brightly in the heavens.
She loved the birds and the flowers, and the people of the earth.

"I wish to leave my sister stars and dwell upon the earth," said the
Star Maiden. "What form is the best for me to take, to be loved by all?"

The young man awoke. At once he hastened to tell his dream to the wise
men of the tribe.

"The beautiful maiden is the star that we have seen in the south," said
the wise men.