Pan and the Tears of the Pine

The pine tree

Pitys was a forest nymph so beautiful that she attracted both Pan and Boreas, the Wind of the North. When she had to decide, Pitys bestowed her favors upon Pan since Pan was making less noise; insulted and thirsty for revenge, Boreas tossed Pitys from a rock.

When Pan found the nymph unresponsive, he took pity on her and transformed her into his sacred tree, the pine tree. From then on, the nymph weeps every time the North Wind blows; her teardrops are the droplets of pine resin that dribble down each autumn of the year.