My daughter has inspired this latest line of prompts. I am to take a country, learn of a local legend, and write about that legend. I am also to do this in alphabetical order, so I am starting with Argentina (yes, I know there are other countries ahead of Argentina alphabetically, but this first legend was too fascinating to pass up).

Sacháyoj is a town in Argentina, but it is also so much more. There is a legendary creature attached to the name Sacháyoj, a guardian of the forest. Indeed, the word Sacháyoj means ‘Lord of the Forest’.

There are varying accounts of the Sacháyoj’s appearance. Sometimes, they are depicted as a bearded man covered in grass, whilst on other occasions, they have been described as having the body of a man, but the limbs of an animal, such as a puma or a fox. On still more occasions, they have been said to be a bush with a human face, or a gigantic animal.

Sacháyoj is said to bestow gifts of honey or mead upon humans who are brave enough to approach, but to those who cut down the forest without cause, Sacháyoj is said to remove the fallen trees from their reach.

A fascinating, and depending on circumstances, terrifying legend.