The Greek myth of Niobe and her pride is possibly one of the best known tales of the willow tree. It’s also one of the saddest. My first encounter with Greek mythology came through a book called D’Aulaire’s Book of Greek Myths when I was about six. I loved that book then and I still love it now. The lessons that were taught in stories like these have stayed with me all my life.

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Knowing that there are “artifacts” like the Niobe rock on Mount Sipylus that make the story “real” make me happy.

If you are a visual person like me, here’s the link to the text version.

If you prefer to hear the story, here’s the audio version.

If you’re in a hurry and want the short version, this one is fairly complete and kind of cute, although it doesn’t let you get really involved in the story.

There are also a fair number of other stories about willow from other cultures. Another well-known one is the Chinese tale of the Blue Willow. The story is often depicted on china plates.

You can read it here.

Here’s a tale from Japan.

And a Native American tale.

And just for good measure, here’s a fable from Aesop.

Enjoy the stories .  Thank you for stopping by.