Interviewee: Sandra Trahan Tape 5020 Interviewer: Julia Mahler Session 1
Transcriber: Erin Segura Fall 2019
Translator: Erin Segura
[Begin Tape 5020. Begin Session I.]
JULIA MAHLER: That’s okay. Julia Mahler here with Sandra Trahan and we’re in Duson, Louisiana for the French 2201 project. Quoi c’est ton nom ?
SANDRA TRAHAN: Mon nom est Sandra Trahan.
MAHLER: Ayoù tu viens ?
TRAHAN: De Church Point.
MAHLER: Quoi c’est l’histoire que tu vas me raconter aujourd’hui ?
TRAHAN: Je vas te dire l’histoire … [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs]
TRAHAN: Avec, de mon mari. Il a tout le temps … [laughs] il a tout le temps [inaudible] du gaz dans notre char.
MAHLER: [laughs] You can tell the story.
TRAHAN: Je vas te dire. Okay. Équand j’étais jeune, puis j’ai juste marié mon mari, il m’a regardé dans ma figure et puis tout d’un escousse, il dit, “On va aller en village.” J’ai dit, “Okay.” Je vas dans le char. Je regarde à la … ayoù mon gaz est et il était dessus E. Et mon mari dit, “T’as pas besoin du gaz ?” J’ai dit, “Okay!” So, quand on arrivait à la, [au ras] de la gas station, all of the … tout d’un escousse, oop !
Mon char a cassé. Oop ! Il voulait p’us gone. Nope. P’us de gaz. Oh, il prend mon char à coups de pied. Puh ! Puh ! Je dis, “Arrête ça ! Va mettre du gaz plutôt !” Il faulait il marche au gas
station avec son gaz tin [puis] revenir back, mettre du gaz [1:52] dans mon char. Phew ! There it goes, mon char commence encore. Il faisait ça une fois par semaine. Tout le temps, il faisait ça. On avait p’us de gaz dans mon char.
MAHLER: Merci. En quelle année t’as été énée ?
TRAHAN: [pauses] MAHLER: Répétez ? TRAHAN: Hein ?
MAHLER: Oh. En quelle année t’as été énée ? TRAHAN: I didn’t understand you. [laughs] MAHLER: [laughs]
TRAHAN: [whispers] Uh-huh. J’étais énée dans octobre --
MAHLER: De ?
TRAHAN: … le sept dedans … hmm.
UKNOWN MALE: Cinquante-six.
TRAHAN: Yeah, but … C’était dans 56 (cinquante-six), but 19 … how do you say “19 ?”
UNKNOWN FEMALE: Dix-neuf cinquante-six.
TRAHAN: [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs] Ayoù t’as été énée ?
TRAHAN: Dans Cankville. UNKNOWN MALE: Louisiana. TRAHAN: Dans Cankville.
MAHLER: Ayoù t’as été élevée ?
TRAHAN: [pauses]
MAHLER: Élevée ?
UNKNOWN FEMALE: Ayoù tu restais ? [laughs]
MAHLER: Ayoù t’as été élevée ?
TRAHAN: I understand, I’m just trying to figure out … I was raised … J’étais élevée dedans Cankville et Carencro.
MAHLER: T’as resté dans d’autres places ?
TRAHAN: J’ai resté dans d’autres places. Plus en Carencro plutot de Cankville.
MAHLER: T’as été jusqu’à quel livre à l’école ?
TRAHAN: [4:06] J’ai été dans le huitième grade, parce que j’avais un petit frère et il était retardé et il faulait que je reste avec lui pour ma mère et mon père travaillait.
MAHLER: T’as étudié le français à l’école ?
TRAHAN: Non.
MAHLER: Non ? Dans ta famille, ça parlait plus en français ou en anglais quand --
TRAHAN: Ma mère et mon père a juste parlé français.
MAHLER: T’es mariée ?
TRAHAN: Ouais.
MAHLER: Ton mari parle français ?
TRAHAN: Il parle pas français, mais il comprend tout quelque chose je dis.
MAHLER: Ton mari parlait français ?
TRAHAN: Non.
MAHLER: Non ? T’as des enfants ?
TRAHAN: Ouais.
MAHLER: Tes enfants parlaient français ? TRAHAN: Non, ça voulait pas parler français. MAHLER: Tu travailles toujours ?
TRAHAN: Non.
MAHLER: Quoi c’était ton travail ?
TRAHAN: Je travaillais à Thrifty ayoù ça tirait des chars.
MAHLER: Quoi c’est ton travail ? Pas travail … oui ? Tu travailles pas ? Quoi c’est ton travail ? Non ?
TRAHAN: Non.
MAHLER: Non. Aujourd’hui, avec qui tu parles français ?
TRAHAN: Avec mes sœurs quand ça vient et avec mon mari. Il me comprend, mais il peut pas parler.
MAHLER: [6:05] Combien souvent tu parles français asteur ?
TRAHAN: Chaque chance je peux, parce que je veux pas perdre la manière que je parle.
MAHLER: Merci. That’s it. [laughs] [break in tape] Okay.
TRAHAN: Équand j’étais jeune, j’avais resté avec ma mère et mon père. Mon père, c’est Oberlin Jagneaux et ma mère était Ozélie Jagneaux. On a resté dans la campagne et puis on restait dans une maison qu’était … qu’avait des --
UNKNOWN FEMALE: Des spirits.
TRAHAN: … qu’avait des ghosts dedans. And … une journée, mon nonc a menu à notre maison. Et puis il a dit à mon père, il dit, “Ta vache est sortie !” Il dit, “Ma vache ?” Il dit,
“Ouais, elle est sortie.” Il dit, “Okay.” Il dit, “Allons l’amener back dans le … dedans le --”
UNKNOWN FEMALE: [7:13] Magasin.
TRAHAN: … dans le magasin.” Il dit, “Okay.” Il dit … il arrivait à la vache et il dit … Quoi c’est son nom [Jill] ?
UNKNOWN FEMALE: I don’t remember. [You need to tell the story.] I don’t know. Caillette !
TRAHAN: Il dit, “Caillette ! Va !” Il a tourné le bord. Caillette était gone. Et [après] ce jour, p’us de Caillette. Elle est gone. Le soir, équand on est pour se coucher dedans la maison, on avait une chambre on pouvait pas rester dedans. Presque toute la nuit, il y avait des enfants qui restaient en dedans qui jouaient cannettes. Ça tirait les cannettes. Ça faisait “Pow ! Pow ! Pow !” Ça allait … tu pouvais pas dormir à force ça après … faire un tas de train. Ça fait, il faulait tu te lèves et puis tu vas et puis t’assir dans l’autre chambre que tu peux dormir dedans. Et une journée, ma Mame, ma mère était dehors et puis elle avait des basses dessus la galerie. Tout d’un escousse, la basse a commencé à galancer, galancer. Et ma mère a tourné le bord et puis elle a regardé à la basse et quand elle a regardé à la basse, la basse a dit, “Ozélie !” Quand la basse a dit “Ozélie,” ma mère a parti à la course [sur la] [inaudible] [dedans] les voisins et puis elle dit, “Oh
! Je peux p’us rester là. Il faut que je gone.” Ça fait, elle s’en va packer et puis elle a … s’en allé.
MAHLER: Fini ?
TRAHAN: [agrees] [break in tape] Okay, ma mère et mon père, eusse était jeunes, jeunes équand ça s’a marié. Ma mère avait 14 (quatorze) ans et mon père avait 18 (dix-huit) ans équand ç’a marié. Dans une journée, des jours, comment eusse était jeunes, mon père a volé ma mère, parce que sa mère à lui voulait pas un autre [Ménard] dans sa famille. Ça fait, elle a dit … so,
[9:40] mon père a, le soir, ça lui a dit, “Mais, ouais. Je vas la voler.” So, il a volé ma mère. Il l’a volé, puis, le lendemain matin, il a été en prison parce que, il a volé ma mère. Et puis, le jour après ça, il faulait qu’il la marie parce que, il l’a volée et quand tu volais quelqu’un dedans ces jours, il faulait que tu la mariais. Ça fait, c’est ça qu’a arrivé avec ma mère et mon père. Mon père a volé … il faulait il la mariait parce que, il l’a volée. Et c’est comme ça c’était. Et puis là, on avait, après ça, ma mère et mon père a resté ensemble pendant longtemps. On a … elle a eu 13 (treize) enfants. Elle a perdu trois et on était dix qu’étaient toujours en vie. And now, on en a neuf qui restent, qu’est toujours en vie. Et moi, je suis la plus jeune dans les filles et puis, j’ai un petit … mon frère. Il est un petit brin plus jeune que moi. Il a quatre ans plus jeune que moi et on est toujours tous là ebsèpe pour un. Et on s’a tout le temps … et bien, on était tout le temps une grosse famille pour Chrismeusse, pour … how do you say “Christmas ?”
UNKNOWN MALE: [inaudible]
UNKNOWN FEMALE: Moi, je connais pas. TRAHAN: [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs]
TRAHAN: On avait tout le temps un gros, gros … on avait une gros [bande]. Mon père et ma mère, eusse avait un gros cochon et on faisait tout ça pour chaque … chaque tout le temps, on avait tout le temps un bon temps avec eusse. On avait pas rien. On avait pas d’argent. On était pauvre. Il faulait eusse ramasse du coton dedans le jour. Et je me rappelle équand j’étais une petite fille, équand ma Mame ramassait du coton, moi, je prendais un ride dessus son sac à coton. Et puis, elle me halait dedans tous les rangs. On a … j’aimais ça, parce que j’étais jeune. Mais, on a … c’est comme aujourd’hui on est. On était pauvre. On avait pas rien. Mais, on avait
[12:20] chacun, tous nous-autres, on s’aimait un tas. Ça fait, ça que ç’a fait une bonne vie avec nous-autres. [break in tape]
MARY: I was putting some peroxide on my cut.
TRAHAN: Tyson taught her again. [laughs] He taught her something else. [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs]
MARY: [Cher baby] He [inaudible].
TRAHAN: I … I’m doing a French immersion for a girl and I’m … I have to speak in French for this girl.
MARY: [agrees]
TRAHAN: And …
MARY: What girl ?
TRAHAN: That [Kacie] knows. And she’s over here, and I’m telling her stories about what’s going on and stuff. And I thought maybe I could get you on the phone and me and you could speak some French together. It’s hard speaking by myself. [laughs]
MARY: Hein ? [laughs] TRAHAN: [laughs] MARY: Who is she ?
TRAHAN: Her name is, what again ?
MAHLER: Julia.
TRAHAN: Julia.
MARY: But she talks French ?
TRAHAN: She’s taking a French class --
MAHLER: [13:20] [laughs]
TRAHAN: … but she’s learning French. [laughs]
MARY: Oh.
TRAHAN: The Cajun French.
MARY: Yeah. Oh, the Cajun French, that’s not like what they learn in school. TRAHAN: Tyson’s texting me, “You can tell her about when we played hide-and-seek in Tennessee.” [laughs]
MARY: [inaudible] We had a good time.
TRAHAN: Tyson texted me. He says, “Tell her about whenever we played hide-and-seek in Tennessee.” We played hide-and-seek --
MARY: [laughs]
TRAHAN: … in an old…
UNKNOWN MALE: Hospital.
TRAHAN: It was an old hospital, but it … they made a …
UNKNOWN MALE: Courthouse.
TRAHAN: A courthouse out of it. And the upstairs was still the hospital. And we … we Cajun we … [laughs]
MARY: You were playing hide-and-seek in there ?
TRAHAN: Yes. We were playing hide --
UNKNOWN FEMALE : We had a good time Mary Jane. [laughs]
TRAHAN: We were playing hide-and-seek --
UNKNOWN FEMALE : [14:11] Man !
TRAHAN: … in the courthouse in Tennessee. We went upstairs. [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs]
TRAHAN: We went upstairs where they had the hospital beds and all that, that was still up there, and we went play hide-and-go-seek in there, me and [Erwin] and I and Tyson and Damon and Moochie all come find us.
MARY: [laughs]
TRAHAN: Yeah. It was so much fun. He left us because he was too scared.
UNKNOWN MALE : I told her [crosstalk]
UNKNOWN FEMALE : [crosstalk] you don’t know how to have fun [inaudible].
MAHLER: [laughs]
MARY: [crosstalk] and all that.
TRAHAN: Well look, allons parler en français. Listen --
MARY: [laughs]
TRAHAN: Listen, we’re going to talk French, me and you. Okay ?
UNKNOWN MALE : [crosstalk]
MARY: Mais, parle français.
TRAHAN: Okay, allons parler en français, moi et toi. Okay.
MARY: Well … TRAHAN: You got it on ? MAHLER: [agrees]
TRAHAN: You were having me on all this time ? [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs]
MARY: [15:00] [laughs]
MAHLER: I didn’t know when you were going to start.
TRAHAN: Okay, Mary. Quoi on va parler ? MARY: Okay. [inaudible] jusqu’à jeudi elle est -- TRAHAN: Pourquoi ?
MARY: [Tu vois, pour ôter] these damn stitches sur mon … on my nose. Sur mon nez.
TRAHAN: Dessus ton nez ?
MARY: Yeah.
TRAHAN: Oh.
MARY: [laughs] Sur mon nez. Oh ! When my --
TRAHAN: [scolds] En français !
MARY: [laughs] Quand j’ai grouillé ma petite gueule --
TRAHAN: Ça fait mal ? MARY: [inaudible] TRAHAN: [agrees]
UNKNOWN FEMALE: What’s “ghost” in French, Mary Jane ?
TRAHAN: Comment tu dis “spirits” in French ?
MARY: Hein ?
TRAHAN: How you say “ghosts” in French ?
MARY: Des visions.
TRAHAN: Visions. That’s it ! Visions !
MARY: Les visions.
TRAHAN: [15:55] [agrees] C’est ça quoi Mame et les autres, équand vous-autres a resté dedans la maison qu’était avec les visions …
MARY: Ouais. On pouvait voir les visions. [laughs]
TRAHAN: Ouais.
MARY: She wants to talk French [crosstalk]
TRAHAN: Équand Caillette --
MARY: … learn French. Are you going to bed ?
TRAHAN: Hé, hé ! Équand Caillette … équand Caillette a disappeared en avant la figure à Daddy …
MARY: Ouais. Et boy, il y avait des visions qu’avaient pas de têtes.
TRAHAN: Ils avaient pas de têtes ?
MARY: Ils avaient pas de têtes !
TRAHAN: Comment ? MARY: Non. [agrees] TRAHAN: T’as vu ça ?
MARY: [Équand ça] restait à l’autre bord de Carencro, là, là … quand eusse parlait dehors en bas de l’arbre --
TRAHAN: [agrees]
MARY: Eusse voyait … c’est là ayoù nous-autres voyait des visions.
TRAHAN: Et puis ça voyait les … avec pas de têtes ?
MARY: Avec pas de têtes. Ouais.
TRAHAN: Ça c’est pas bon.
MARY: [17:04] Non.
TRAHAN: Je [galoperais], moi. [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs]
TRAHAN: [J’aurais] pas resté avec eusse.
MARY: Elle est à ta maison à toi ?
TRAHAN: Elle est après me tape dessus un téléphone.
MARY: Hein ?
TRAHAN: Elle est après nous tape dessus un téléphone. MARY: Oh, elle est après nous attendre parler -- TRAHAN: Ouais.
MARY: … dessus le phone ?
TRAHAN: Ouais.
MARY: Oh.
TRAHAN: Ouais.
MARY: Ben, bon.
TRAHAN: Ça fait, quoi t’après faire demain ?
MARY: Demain, pas de trop parce que j’ai pas de linge pour repasser, merci Bon Dieu. Aujourd’hui non plus, il y en avait pas et je suis larguée comme un … larguée, tu peux pas croire comment larguée je suis. Ouais, c’est mon dos qui fait mal.
TRAHAN: Mais, demain matin tu peux juste t’assir et puis faire arien.
MARY: Oh, ouais. Moi, pas faire arien ? Il faut que je grouille.
TRAHAN: [agrees]
MARY: [18:02] Oh, il faut que je grouille.
TRAHAN: Mais, c’est ça quoi je dis. Ça fait …
MARY: Je suis toujours après me coucher dedans … dessus le recliner.
TRAHAN: Comment ?
MARY: Oh, well, je dors mieux sur ça que dans mon lit.
TRAHAN: Mais ça, c’est bon.
MARY: Ma [inaudible] [peut-être] trop fort, là. You know ?
TRAHAN: T’as pas de tête, c’est pour ça.
MARY: Ouais, [crosstalk]
TRAHAN: [laughs].
MARY: J’ai mal de tête, aussi.
TRAHAN: [laughs].
MARY: [inaudible] avec moi.
TRAHAN: Well, je souhaite eusse comprend quoi on est après parler, parce que je veux y donner une bonne grade.
MARY: [crosstalk] on est après dire. TRAHAN: Je veux y donner une bonne grade. MARY: [agrees]
TRAHAN: [agrees]
MARY: Well. TRAHAN: Ça fait …
MARY: [Terry] m’a appelé talheure. T’as appelé [Tanya] ?
TRAHAN: [19:03] Non, pas encore. [disagrees].
MARY: Oh.
TRAHAN: Je vas l’appeler talheure.
MARY: Mais … TRAHAN: Il faut que -- MARY: Oh.
TRAHAN: [crosstalk] Oh, mais. C’est pas de ma faute.
UNKNOWN FEMALE: [inaudible]
MARY: [laughs]
TRAHAN: Mais, il faut que j’espère jusqu’à demain matin, là, ben.
MARY: [agrees]
TRAHAN: Ça fait …
MARY: Elle couche sur le sofa, pauvre malheureuse. Elle est toujours après soufferre avec ça. Mais [crosstalk]
TRAHAN: [agrees]
MARY: … écouter, ouais.
TRAHAN: Mais, je connais quand t’as cancer … équand t’as cancer, il faut que ça le coupe ou l'ôter.
MARY: Oh, oui, mais pas autant. Ça, c’est un tas !
TRAHAN: Mais, garde ton nez !
MARY: Non.
TRAHAN: Mais ...
MARY: | [19:43] [laughs] |
TRAHAN: | [laughs] |
MARY: | I know that. |
TRAHAN: | [laughs] |
MARY: | Un bord à l’autre. |
TRAHAN: | Mais, ouais. |
MARY: | À travers -- |
TRAHAN: | Ça fait … |
MARY: | … de mon nez. |
TRAHAN: | Mais, all right, chère. |
MARY: | All right, then. |
TRAHAN: | On va se parler demain matin. |
MARY: | All right, bèb. |
TRAHAN: | Bye, bèb. |
MARY: | Bye. |
TRAHAN: | Je t’aime. |
MARY: | [laughs] |
TRAHAN: | She didn’t hear me. |
MAHLER: | [laughs] |
[20:04]
[End Tape 5020. End Session 1.] [Total session time - 20:04]
Interviewee: Sandra Trahan Tape 5020 Interviewer: Julia Mahler Session 1
Transcriber: Erin Segura Fall 2019
Translator: Erin Segura
[Begin Tape 5020. Begin Session I.]
JULIA MAHLER: That’s okay. Julia Mahler here with Sandra Trahan and we’re in Duson, Louisiana for the French 2201 project. What is your name ?
SANDRA TRAHAN: My name is Sandra Trahan.
MAHLER: Where are you from ?
TRAHAN: Church Point.
MAHLER: What’s the story that you’re going to tell me today ? TRAHAN: I’m going to tell you the story about … [laughs] MAHLER: [laughs]
TRAHAN: My husband. He always … [lauhgs] … he always [inaudible] gaz in our car.
MAHLER: [laughs] You can tell the story.
TRAHAN: I’m going to tell you. Okay. When I was young and I had just married my husband, he looked me right in the eye and then all of the sudden, he said, “We’re going to go into town.” I said, “Okay.” I got in the car. I looked at the … where the gas is, and it was on empty. And my husband asked, “Do you need gas ?” I said, “Okay !” So, when we got to the [inaudible] gas station, all of the sudden, oop ! My car was broken. Oop ! It didn’t want to go anymore. Nope. No more gas. Oh, he started kicking my car. Puh ! Puh ! I said, “Stop it ! Go put gas in it instead !” He had to walk to the gas station with his gas can and then come back, put gas
[1:52] in my car. Phew ! There it went, my car started back up. It used to do that once a week. All the time, it would do that. There’d be no more gas in my car.
MAHLER: Thank you. What year were you born ?
TRAHAN: [pauses] MAHLER: Say that again ? TRAHAN: Huh ?
MAHLER: Oh. What year were you born ? TRAHAN: I didn’t understand you. [laughs] MAHLER: [laughs]
TRAHAN: [whispers] Uh-huh. I was born in October --
MAHLER: In ?
TRAHAN: … the seventh of … hmm.
UKNOWN MALE: Fifty-six.
TRAHAN: Yeah, but … it was in 56, but 19 … how do you say “19 ?”
UNKNOWN FEMALE: Dix-neuf cinquante-six, 1956.
TRAHAN: [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs] Where were you born ?
TRAHAN: In Cankton. UNKNOWN MALE: Louisiana. TRAHAN: In Cankton.
MAHLER: Where were you raised ?
TRAHAN: [pauses]
MAHLER: Élevée … raised ?
UNKNOWN FEMALE: Where did you live ? [laughs]
MAHLER: Where were you raised ?
TRAHAN: I understood, I’m just trying to figure out … I was raised … I was raised in Cankton and Carencro.
MAHLER: Have you lived anywhere else ?
TRAHAN: I’ve lived in other places. More in Carencro than Cankton.
MAHLER: How many grades did you finish in school ?
TRAHAN: [4:06] I finished eighth grade, because I had a little brother who was disabled and I had to take care of him while my mother and father were working.
MAHLER: Did you study French in school ?
TRAHAN: No.
MAHLER: No ? Did your family speak more French or more English when --
TRAHAN: My mother and father only spoke French.
MAHLER: Are you married ?
TRAHAN: Yeah.
MAHLER: Does your husband speak French ?
TRAHAN: He doesn’t speak French, but he understands everything I say.
MAHLER: Did your husband used to speak French ?
TRAHAN: No.
MAHLER: No ? Do you have children ?
TRAHAN: Yeah.
MAHLER: Do your children speak French ? TRAHAN: No, they didn’t want to speak French. MAHLER: Are you still workin ?
TRAHAN: No.
MAHLER: What kind of work did you do ?
TRAHAN: I worked at Thrifty, where they rent cars.
MAHLER: What type of work do you do ? Not work … yes ? You don’t work ? No ?
TRAHAN: No.
MAHLER: No. Today, with whom do you speak French ?
TRAHAN: With my sisters when they come to visit, and with my husband. He understands me, but he can’t speak it.
MAHLER: [6:05] How often do you speak French now ?
TRAHAN: Anytime I can, because I don’t want to lose the ability to speak the way I do.
MAHLER: Thank you. That’s it. [laughs] [break in tape] Okay.
TRAHAN: When I was young, I lived with my mother and my father. My father was Oberlin Jagneaux and my mother was Ozélie Jagneaux. We lived in the country and then we lived in a house that was … that had --
UNKNOWN FEMALE: Spirits.
TRAHAN: … that had ghosts in it. And … one day, my uncle came to our house. And then he said to my father, he said, “Your cow got out !” He said, “My cow ?” He said, “Yeah, she got out.” He said, “Okay.” He said, “Let’s go bring her back in the … in the --”
UNKNOWN FEMALE: [7:13] Barn.
TRAHAN: … in the barn.” He said, “Okay.” He said … he got to the cow and he said … What was her name, [Jill] ?
UNKNOWN FEMALE: I don’t remember. [You need to tell the story.] I don’t know. Caillette !
TRAHAN: He said, “Caillette ! Go !” He turned around. Caillette was gone. And from that day on, there was no more Caillette. She was gone. At night, when they’d go to sleep in the barn, there was a room that we could stay in. There were children who stayed in it who would play with fireworks almost all night. They’d pop fireworks. They’d go, “Pow ! Pow ! Pow !” They’d go … you couldn’t sleep because they were … making a lot of noise. So, you had to get up and go sit in another room so you could get some sleep. And one day, my mother was outside, and she had some washbasins on the porch. All of the sudden, a basin started to swing back and forth. And my mother turned around and she looked at the basin and when she looked at it, it said, “Ozélie !” When the basin said, “Ozélie,” my mother took off running [inaudible] the neighbors and then she said, “Oh ! I can’t stay here any longer ! I have to get out of here.” So, she went and packed her bags and then she left.
MAHLER: Is that everything ?
TRAHAN: [agrees] [break in tape] Okay, my mother and my father, they were very young when they got married. My mother was 14 years old and my father was 18 years old when they got married. Back then, when they were young, my father snuck off with my mother because his mother wanted him to marry another [Ménard] from his own family. So, she said … so, [9:40] my father, one night, he said to himself, “This is it. I’m going to steal her away.” So, he kidnapped my mother. He kidnapped her, then, the next day, he went to jail because he had
kidnapped her. And then, the next day, he had to marry her because he had snuck off with her, and back then, when you snuck off with someone, the two of you had to get married. So, that’s how it happened with my mother and father. My father stole her … he had to marry her, because he had snuck off with her. That’s how things were. And then, we had, after that, my mother and my father lived together for a long time. We had … she had 13 children. She lost three of them, so there were 10 of us who lived. And now, there are nine of us remaining, who are still alive.
And me, I’m the youngest of the girls and then, I have a younger … my brother. He’s a little bit younger than me. He’s four years younger than me and we’re all still here except for one. And we always … well, we always had a lot of family for Christmas, for … how do you say “Chrismeusse ?”
UNKNOWN MALE: [inaudible] UNKNOWN FEMALE: I don’t know. TRAHAN: [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs]
TRAHAN: They had to pick cotton during the daytime. And I remember when I was a little girl, when my mother was picking cotton, I’d ride on her cotton sack. And then, she’d pull me through the rows. We … I loved that, because I was little. But, we had … it’s like we are today. We were poor. We had nothing. But we had [12:20] each other, and we loved each other a lot.
So, we had a good life and we had each other. [break in tape]
MARY: I was putting some peroxide on my cut.
TRAHAN: Tyson taught her again. [laughs] He taught her something else. [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs]
MARY: Cher baby. He [inaudible].
TRAHAN: I … I’m doing a French immersion for a girl and I’m … I have to speak in French for this girl.
MARY: [agrees]
TRAHAN: And …
MARY: What girl ?
TRAHAN: That [Kacie] knows. And she’s over here, and I’m telling her stories about what’s going on and stuff. And I thought maybe I could get you on the phone and me and you could speak some French together. It’s hard speaking by myself. [laughs]
MARY: Huh ? [laughs] TRAHAN: [laughs] MARY: Who is she ?
TRAHAN: Her name is, what again ?
MAHLER: Julia.
TRAHAN: Julia.
MARY: But she talks French ? TRAHAN: She’s taking a French class -- MAHLER: [13:20] [laughs]
TRAHAN: … but she’s learning French. [laughs]
MARY: Oh.
TRAHAN: The Cajun French.
MARY: Yeah. Oh, the Cajun French, that’s not like what they learn in school.
TRAHAN: Tyson’s texting me, “You can tell her about when we played hide-and-seek in Tennessee.” [laughs]
MARY: [inaudible] We had a good time.
TRAHAN: Tyson texted me. He says, “Tell her about whenever we played hide-and-seek in Tennessee.” We played hide-and-seek --
MARY: [laughs]
TRAHAN: … in an old…
UNKNOWN MALE: Hospital.
TRAHAN: It was an old hospital, but it … they made a …
UNKNOWN MALE: Courthouse.
TRAHAN: A courthouse out of it. And the upstairs was still the hospital. And we … we Cajun we … [laughs]
MARY: You were playing hide-and-seek in there ?
TRAHAN: Yes. We were playing hide --
UNKNOWN FEMALE : We had a good time Mary Jane. [laughs]
TRAHAN: We were playing hide-and-seek --
UNKNOWN FEMALE : [14:11] Man !
TRAHAN: … in the courthouse in Tennessee. We went upstairs. [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs]
TRAHAN: We went upstairs where they had the hospital beds and all that, that was still up there, and we went play hide-and-go-seek in there, me and [Erwin] and I and Tyson and Damon and Moochie all come find us.
MARY: [laughs]
TRAHAN: Yeah. It was so much fun. He left us because he was too scared.
UNKNOWN MALE : I told her [crosstalk]
UNKNOWN FEMALE : [crosstalk] you don’t know how to have fun [inaudible].
MAHLER: [laughs]
MARY: [crosstalk] and all that.
TRAHAN: Well, look, let’s say it in French. Listen --
MARY: [laughs]
TRAHAN: Listen, we’re going to talk French, me and you. Okay ?
UNKNOWN MALE : [crosstalk]
MARY: Well, say it in French.
TRAHAN: Okay, let’s speak French, you and me. Okay.
MARY: Well … TRAHAN: You got it on ? MAHLER: [agrees]
TRAHAN: You were having me on all this time ? [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs]
MARY: [15:00] [laughs]
MAHLER: I didn’t know when you were going to start. TRAHAN: Okay, Mary. What are we going to talk about ? MARY: Okay. [inaudible] until Thursday she’s -- TRAHAN: Why ?
MARY: You know, to take out these damn stitches that are on my … on my nose. Sur mon nez.
TRAHAN: On your nose ?
MARY: Yeah.
TRAHAN: Oh.
MARY: [laughs] On my nose. Oh ! When my --
TRAHAN: [scolds] In French !
MARY: [laughs] When I moved my little mouth --
TRAHAN: It hurts ? MARY: [inaudible] TRAHAN: [agrees]
UNKNOWN FEMALE: What’s “ghost” in French, Mary Jane ?
TRAHAN: How do you say “spirits” in French ?
MARY: Huh ?
TRAHAN: How you say “ghosts” in French ?
MARY: Des visions.
TRAHAN: Visions. That’s it ! Ghosts !
MARY: Les visions.
TRAHAN: [15:55] [agrees] That’s what Mom and the others, when y’all lived in the house that had ghosts ...
MARY: Yeah. We could see ghosts. [laughs]
TRAHAN: Yeah.
MARY: She wants to talk French [crosstalk]
TRAHAN: When Caillette --
MARY: … learn French. Are you going to bed ?
TRAHAN: Hey, hey ! When Caillette … when Caillette disappeared right in front of Daddy’s face ...
MARY: Yes. And boy, there were ghosts that didn’t have heads.
TRAHAN: They were headless ? MARY: They didn’t have heads ! TRAHAN: How’s that ?
MARY: No. [agrees]
TRAHAN: You saw that ?
MARY: When they lived out there on the other side of Carencro … when they were talking outside under the tree --
TRAHAN: [agrees]
MARY: They saw … that’s where we would see ghosts. TRAHAN: And they saw the … the ones without heads ? MARY: The headless ones. Yep.
TRAHAN: That’s no good.
MARY: [17:04] No.
TRAHAN: I’d run away, if it were me. [laughs]
MAHLER: [laughs]
TRAHAN: I wouldn’t have been able to stay there.
MARY: She’s at your house ?
TRAHAN: She’s recording me with her phone.
MARY: Huh ?
TRAHAN: She’s recording me on a phone. MARY: Oh, she hears us talking -- TRAHAN: Yeah.
MARY: … on the phone ?
TRAHAN: Yeah.
MARY: Oh.
TRAHAN: Yeah.
MARY: Well, okay.
TRAHAN: Well, what are you up to tomorrow ?
MARY: Tomorrow, nothing much, because I don’t have any ironing to do, thank the Good Lord. Today neither, I didn’t have any and I was tired as a … tired like you can’t believe. Yeah, it’s my back that’s hurting me.
TRAHAN: But tomorrow you can just sit back and do nothing.
MARY: Oh, yeah. Me, do nothing ? I have to move.
TRAHAN: [agrees]
MARY: [18:02] I can’t sit still.
TRAHAN: Well, that’s what I’m saying. So … MARY: I’m always sleeping in my … in my recliner. TRAHAN: How’s that ?
MARY: Oh, well, I sleep better in it than in my bed.
TRAHAN: Well, that’s good.
MARY: My [inaudible] [maybe] too loud, there. You know ?
TRAHAN: You’re crazy, that’s why. MARY: Yeah, [crosstalk] TRAHAN: [laughs].
MARY: My head hurts, too.
TRAHAN: [laughs].
MARY: [inaudible] with me.
TRAHAN: Well, I hope they understand what we’re talking about, because I want to get a good grade for her.
MARY: [crosstalk] we’re saying. TRAHAN: I want to get her a good grade. MARY: [agrees]
TRAHAN: [agrees]
MARY: Well.
TRAHAN: So ...
MARY: [Terry] just called me. Did you call [Tanya] ?
TRAHAN: [19:03] No, not yet. [disagrees]
MARY: Oh.
TRAHAN: I’ll call her soon.
MARY: But ...
TRAHAN: I have to --
MARY: Oh.
TRAHAN: [crosstalk] Oh, well. It’s not my fault.
UNKNOWN FEMALE: [inaudible]
MARY: [laughs]
TRAHAN: Well, I’ll have to wait until tomorrow. MMARY: [agrees]
TRAHAN: So ...
MARY: She’s sleeping on the sofa, poor thing. She’s still suffering from that. But [crosstalk]
TRAHAN: [agrees]
MARY: … listening, yeah.
TRAHAN: Well, I know that when you have cancer … when you have cancer, you have to cut it out or have it removed.
MARY: Oh, yes, but not that much. That’s a lot !
TRAHAN: Well, look at your nose !
MARY: No.
TRAHAN: Well ... MARY: [19:43] [laughs] TRAHAN: [laughs] MARY: I know that.
TRAHAN: [laughs]
MARY: From one side to the other.
TRAHAN: Well, yeah. MARY: Across -- TRAHAN: So …
MARY: … my nose. TRAHAN: Well, all right, dear. MARY: All right, then.
TRAHAN: We’ll talk tomorrow morning.
MARY: All right, bèb. TRAHAN: Bye, bèb. MARY: Bye.