In the first story, we learn about  how tortoise got his shell. He wasn't always a slow moving shelled animal. He used to be fast and strong and handsome. But because he was late, he got locked out of the party.

In the second story, a hunter finds a beautiful tortoise singing a mesmerizing song. He wanted to take her home, but she would only go with him on one promise: that he would not tell anyone. 

Source: West African folk-tales by Barker, William Henry, 1882-; Sinclair, Cecilia

Narrator: Dustin Steichmann @StoriesSandman or @SandmanStories on Mastodon and on Galas

Music: Dagbon Melodies from the 80s 

Sound FX: Crickets Outside My Window by Dustin Steichmann

Podcast Shoutout: Mythological Africans/Helen

Listener Shoutout: Northern Ireland

"Florida's Gopher Tortoise" by minds-eye is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.