Marie Therse of Acadian Village

By Nonie Creaghan (Mother of sandbunting)


Table of Contents

Intro

Chapter One Entangled

Chapter Two Trouble

Chapter Three Too Excited

Chapter Four Dreams of the South

Chapter Five False Thaw

Chapter Six Visitors

Chapter Seven Beware the Needles

Chapter Eight A Secret Place

Chapter Nine In Trouble again

Chapter Ten Treasures

Chapter Eleven The Boat Festival

Chapter Twelve Pierre the Hero

Chapter Thirteen The Reunion



Intro



The French Acadians played an important part in the early history of

New Brunswick, Canada, and continue to do so. Their first influence was

their art, crafts, language and music.


On arriving on the banks of the Mirimichi, their weapon was the

warmth of their personality. Thus they were welcomed by the native

people to share the land that was to become known as Canada.


Let us join Marie Therese for a walk through French Village.


-1-


Entangled


"Maman, we got a post card. It has a picture of an alligator on it" cried

Marie Therese excitedly. "Who's it from?"


Her mother smiled when she turned over the card.


"It's from Aunt Sophie. You know. You met her last year at the family

reunion. She says she is coming to the reunion again this summer."


"How come she lives in a faraway place and is still our family?"


Marie Therese looked out through frosted windows at coloured leaves

blown about the yard by cold Autumn winds and shivered. It would be nice

to lay in the heat like the alligator.


"Aunt Sophie's ancestors had to move away a long time ago .

It was a time of kings and wars and new lands. Aunt Sophie may live

in a swamp in Louisiana but she is still Acadian as you and me."


A puppy with charcoal shaggy fur and big brown eyes scratched at the

door wanting attention.


"I think it's about time to give the dog a name, Maman."


"Ah no Ma Petite. Don't get to attached to that dog. It must belong to

someone in town and they will come looking for him one day ."


The orphan puppy dog had followed Marie Therese everywhere for the

past week. Marie Therese loved the little dog. He seemed to want to

belong to her. She felt that no one would ever come and that the orphan

puppy would always remain with her.


She looked outside. The puppy's tongue was hanging out and he looked

like he was smiling.Marie Therese was sure that puppies did smile in their

own way. She felt very proud of the little puppy. Being with him made her

feel brave enough to go anywhere.


Marie Therese went out to the dog and they started walking in no

particular direction through the fields. The new frost had brought about a

change and as they approached the dense woods, she sensed that the birds

were more restless than usual. The crispness in the air brought on urgent

preparations for their trip south.


In the woods she caught sight of squirrels that seemed too busy even

to be timid. They were rushing back and forth in search of nuts to store for

winter use. Marie Theresa told them to relax. After all, it was just the first

nip of frost and shouldn't send them into such a frenzy.


The young dog chased a couple of squirrels, not far though, as they just

stopped and stood on their hind legs and faced him. The dog walked away

after deciding that the squirrels were not interested in play.


Maria Therese walked back to the field. There were spider tents

scattered everywhere over the ground. The webs were made noticeable by

beads of dew glittering on the delicate threads. Even the bushes

nearby were covered. They were beautiful, unlike the cobwebs that formed

sometimes in her home.


"Spiders were certainly busy workers,",she thought. A little

shiver went through her as another thought finally came to her. Spiders

terrified her. She reached out her hand and slapped the branches free of

the webs that bound them.


The little dog barked. Marie Therese turned and, there he was, bound up

in a huge web. He tried wiggling out but it was no use. He couldn't even

seem to open his mouth to let out another bark. The little girl started over

to rescue him when suddenly a huge spider walked straight up and over

her with a thread hanging down from it. She stood frozen with shock and

before she could move, she was bound like the bushes and the little dog in

the spider's web. Though she couldn't move, at least she could see. It was a

rather comfortable feeling as the threads were soft. At the same time, they

were very tough and she could not break free.


All kinds of dreadful looking insects lit upon her as she stood. It was

frightening and she was relieved when she discovered that they couldn't

reach her nor could they set them selves free. They were trapped.


An army of brightly coloured spiders appeared.The little girl hadn't

realised that spiders could be beautiful. They picked the insects off the

threads that bound her and unfolded the threads one by one . She was set

free.


They used the strands of web to recover the bushes and as they

worked and paid no attention to the little girl whatsoever. They danced up

and down in a slow rhythm as they worked. Marie Therese realised how

warm and safe the bushes really were under the web. "I've changed my

mind about spiders. You only protect Nature", she said.


Suddenly she remembered the dog. He was still caught. "Would you

free my dog?" she asked the spiders. They did so and it was like watching

a special performance to see them undo the dog. They withdrew one

thread at a time. Once the dog was free, he barked and ran about to spend

his energy.

"Silly dog," she said. " You are nothing but trouble" . The dog looked up at

her as if her understood. "Wait a minute. That's what I'll call you. Come

on "Troubles." The little dog trotted happily behind.


Marie Therese returned home, happy with the knowledge that Troubles

had a names and that spiders were Nature's friends.

-2-


For Keeps


Her daddy was down on the bay ice straightening up his nets. It was

smelt fishing time in the village. Marie Therese walked out to the ice

village. There were little tiny huts lined up on the shore. Fishermen moved

in from other places to reach the small silver smelts by setting nets through

the ice. Marie Therese knew they must be warm, because smoke came out

of the chimneys.


'Troubles', the orphan puppy was very nosy and before Marie Therese

could warn him, the dog entered a hut and headed straight for the cookies

on the little table in the shabby room. Not one was left.


"You're a bad puppy dog. I gave you a good name," Marie Therese said.


The puppy followed the girl out to the nets. It all looked strange to

Marie Therese. There were two poles standing up with a narrow bar

across. On the ground, Marie Theses noticed a hole in the ice and looking

closer saw the water. "That's where the nets are, Troubles," she told the

dog. There was no sign of her daddy, and there were no fishermen around

because there was no work to do until it was time to pull up the nets again.


Marie Therese and Troubles, the puppy, ran back to shore. The cold made

Marie Therese's cheeks as rosy as apples. The sun was setting and it

was time to go home. When she reached the house, Troubles squealed.


"What's wrong?"she asked.


The puppy lifted his paws. Ice was caked solidly between his toes so Marie

Therese picked him up and brought him into the house.


Marie Therese's mother scolded but when she learned that the puppy

was so cold, she let him stay in.

Marie Therese was right. No one ever came to claim Troubles and he

became her very own puppy dog.


-3-


Too Excited


There were miles of snow ahead. Marie Therese followed her Daddy

and the fishermen on snowshoes. Troubles, the little dog, ran ahead and

then behind. He ran ahead to see that all was clear and behind to see that

the little girl was still with them. Marie Therese felt tired. She couldn't tell

the men how miserable she felt. They had not wanted her to come for just

that reason. They were going out on the frozen Miramichi to check their

nets.


It was a clear day. A group of tree tops marked the islands from a

distance. The snowshoes felt heavy on the little girl's feet and she

stopped. 'Troubles' ran back. He jumped, putting his two front paws on the

little girl's legs. Marie Therese brushed the dog's feet off. She turned back

to the Village. 'Troubles' stood and watched.


"Come, Allez, vite", Marie Therese called.


'Troubles' ran to the little girl. His tail wagged and his tongue hung out at

the side of his mouth. He was smiling, that is, the way dogs smile. They

reached the village road. Marie Therese took off her snowshoes and

carried them to the fish shed.


When Marie Therese opened the door, birds came from all

directions, from under and over the wooden beams. They flew every way.

'Troubles' barked. He ran around making the birds excited.


"Stop Troubles', you'll scare the birds," Marie Therese scolded.


Troubles was having too much fun to stop. The dog chased himself and

barked as the birds flew nervously out of reach. The little dog didn't listen.

The dog loved to play and this was play to him.


Suddenly one little bird got so excited, he hit a beam and fell down to

the shed floor. "Troubles', still thinking it was play, went over and

nudged the bird with his nose and then stood back and barked.

"Look what you have done, you naughty thing. The poor little bird,"

Marie Therese said as she examined it.


One wing and foot were torn and it was bleeding. She wrapped it in a

hanky and ran to the village store. Tears filled her big brown eyes as she

showed the little bird to the storekeeper.


He took the bird and examined it carefully. Then he got some

alcohol, adhesive and gauze from the shelf and bandaged the birds

wounds. It couldn't walk and it couldn't fly.


When she arrived home, Marie Therese spent all her time nursing

the wounded bird. Months passed and the bird grew strong. He was now

able to limp and even fly a little. 'Troubles' played gentle games and

they became great friends.



-4-


Dreams of the South


Everyone helped haul spruce trees to a field where they would

be piled up by truckers for shipment to other places. Most of the children in

French Village were working as there were only a few days left to get them

ready so that the trees would arrive in far away places in time for

Christmas.


Marie Therese saw a particularly nice tree and placed it carefully on the

top of a pile.


"I hope that one goes to Aunt Sophie in Louisiana," she said to herself with

fingers crossed.


'Troubles' enjoyed the trek through the woods. Though he was much more

of a nuisance than a help. He acted as if he were in charge of the whole

operation. The little girl's enthusiasm tickled him.


The girl ran over to a bundle of trees the dog was sniffing and

barking at. Marie Therese shouted at him but Troubles' was persistent.

She didn't want to try to move the bundle of trees on her own but finally

she took a hold of them and rolled them onto the canvas pull. She was

exhausted. 'Troubles' was still barking.


I'm not moving," the little girl said but the dog barked again.


Marie Therese looked and discovered a saucy squirrel that even the

barking failed to budge.


"Squirrels are supposed to be busy this time of the year," Marie Therese

scolded.

"I'm not collecting nuts. I'm riding south with your bundle of trees, " he

answered.


Marie Therese explained that he'd need food for the journey. The

squirrel laughed in reply, the way squirrels laugh that is. Oh, he'd get

plenty. There would be no hibernating for him this winter. He was

southbound.


'Troubles' quieted down. Squirrels usually give him a merry

chase.


There was the sound of children approaching. The squirrel landed in

one big leap on the canvas pull and hid under the spruce branches before

the bundle was hauled away. It stood for two days in the yard. The

truckers loaded other bundles and Marie Therese wondered when they

would be back to pick up hers. The little squirrel, still hiding among the

branches, looked weak from hunger. Marie Therese tried persuading him

to go back to his family. Tears filled the little animal's eyes. He couldn't. It

was too late. He hadn't done his share of the work.


Just then Marie Therese remembered that she still had a bag of

peanuts left over from Halloween. She offered it to the squirrel. He

decided to take them and return home. They were the tastiest nuts he had

ever eaten even though he felt ashamed. They'd never know that he'd

taken off the work season in preparation to head south.


The wee squirrel smiled, like squirrels smile that is, and Marie

Therese gave him a kiss on his cold little nose and 'Troubles' gave him a

friendly lick. Then they scampered out of the woods.


-5-


The False Thaw


The snow melted and became rather slushy in French Village on the

Miramichi. Marie Therese tried tobogganing though the snow was crusty

on the mound near her home. It was also very slushy in the field. Her feet

sank every time she took a step, and it was no fun. The weather was

warm, more like Spring weather than Winter. The sun tried its best to peek

out through the clouds, but somehow it didn't seem make it.


Marie Therese and her dog 'Troubles' made for the shore road to the

wharf. There was just bare tarmac which felt good underfoot. The river

looked unchanged though. Marie Therese expected to see open water. Her

Mother said this was a January thaw so she thought everything

would melt. Her snowman in the backyard had melted. All that remained

was a lump of snow.


There was nothing to do on the shore, nothing to do on the wharf.

The snow that covered the bay still remained a fresh beautiful white while

what was left of the snow in the village was a dirty grey. Seagulls glided

gracefully around as if expecting the thaw to open enough water for them

to dive for fish, or at least that is what Marie Therese supposed as seagulls

didn't often come inland during the winter.


The little girl stood watching while 'Troubles' chased and barked at

the birds flying above. One seagull broke away from the flock and flew

over, landing on the rock nearest Marie Therese. Noticing the bird, she

reached out her arm, expecting it to fly away. Its wings spread showing

layers of exquisite white feathers.


"We came inland to fish," the seagull said in what sounded like a cackle.


"We followed the breezes to you."


"I can't feed you. I'm just a little girl," Marie Therese replied.


The seagull folded his wings. "My flock needs food."


At that moment "Troubles" ran back to the girl. Taking no notice of the

seagull, he then went back to chasing the flock.


"That must be our food," the seagull announced . Its wings spread out

while he watched the little dog running out to the snow-covered bay.


"No...that's my dog," Marie Therese replied.


The little girl added that she didn't think that 'Troubles' would taste like

fish. In fact, she was sure he wouldn't taste good at all.


All at once she remembered seeing a wooden box of salt Tommy cod

as she walked along the breakwater on the upper beach.


"I have your feed", she cried happily as she ran to where the box was.


The seagull followed and after looking the fish over, he said "You kept the

promise of the warm winds". And with that, he let out a cry that brought

all the seagulls to shore.


"Troubles' lost courage when he saw the birds all together. He

walked meekly over to Marie Therese for protection. She picked him up

and walked away.


The seagulls waited until she reached the road before flying up,

diving down again and then up and away into the distance. It seemed that

winter was ready to return, gently bringing clean fresh snow to the

Miramichi.


-6-


Visitors in the House


Mice crept into Marie Therese's house in French Village on the

Miramichi. The little mice went into hiding but Marie Therese's mother

caught sight of one and heard others. She set traps, determined to catch

them. In the morning when she inspected the traps, they had been set off,

the cheese was taken but the mice were gone.


"They must be very clever mice," she said.


Marie Therese was very interested and very curious about the little

creatures. She went to bed early but couldn't sleep. She missed her dog

'Troubles'. He usually slept in a basket next to her bed, but lately he

preferred sleeping on a cushion on the kitchen floor. Perhaps he was trying

to help her mother catch the mice.


The house was silent. Marie Therese's family were asleep. She

decided to go downstairs and visit 'Troubles'. Perhaps he would follow her

back to her room. She crept out of bed. It was dark and spooky walking

through the house at night. She had to feel her way along the hall and

down the stairway to the kitchen. The moon shone through the window

and gave light. All of a sudden she heard one mousetrap after another

snap. She felt along the wall and turned the light on. There was "Troubles

with a stick between his teeth. He had upset the traps. He was helping the

little mice!


Marie Therese was shocked. The dog did not even look ashamed of

himself. In fact, he looked very pleased with himself indeed. She was

about to scold him when a little mouse appeared and approached the

cheese in the sprung trap. He was just about to take a bite when he noticed

the little girl. He didn't run into hiding. He just gave a curious stare. Marie

Therese decided that it was cute but saucy for a little mouse. He must

have decided that Marie Therese wasn't dangerous because he stayed

eating the cheese instead of scurrying away.


Soon other little mice joined it. After the meal, 'Troubles' played

hide-and-seek with his little friends. They were very tricky and could hide

almost anywhere. 'Troubles' lost the game. He curled up on his cushion

again and the little mice cuddled up next to him. They were all soon asleep.

Marie Therese didn't know what to do. She knew her mother

wanted to get rid of the little creatures before they got into the food. They

were so adorable, however, that she thought they should go free. It had to

be soon because her mother was planning to borrow the neighbour's

tomcat the next day and the tomcat would gobble them all up. Marie

Therese had to think.


It was very hard to think in the middle of the night. There

would be a thought but it would quickly vanish out into the darkness. But a

thought did come eventually and it seemed like the right thought.

She crept softly over to the cupboard and took out her minnow net. She

scooped up the little mice into the net . She went outside to the barn and

placed them gently in the hay. "Troubles" scratched the door after them.

Marie Therese wondered if he would understand. After all they were his

little friends.


She turned out the kitchen light and crept upstairs to her room.

The little dog followed. He jumped in his basket and as if nothing had ever

happened, he curled up and went to sleep.



-7-


Beware the Needles


The Miramichi forest near French Village still had snow blanketing

the ground. The little roadway through the woods was muddy, wet and

full of ruts. Marie Therese didn't care as she was wearing a new pair of

new high rubber boots that kept her feet protected. Her little dog,

"Troubles", ran ahead. His feet were very dirty but he was so happy to be

out on the trail that he didn't seem to notice.


He saw a rabbit that had not yet turned brown. He stopped, put his

nose in the air and sniffed. Then he chased the rabbit. Marie Therese

scolded him as the poor little rabbit stood out so clearly against the

ground. It could really be in danger this time of year. Brown or white in the

early Spring stood out against a ground that was neither colour.


The rabbit ran with great speed and 'Troubles' couldn't keep up with

him. It disappeared, probably by escaping into the snowy part of the

woods. Troubles sniffed into the air and at the trees. Though he sniffed

eagerly, he couldn't pick up the scent of the rabbit.


The rabbit was feeling very clever. He ran out, showing himself

again to the little dog. 'Troubles' went wild! He barked and chased the

rabbit along the trail. He almost caught the end of its fluffy little tail when

the rabbit took a hop sideways and disappeared again. It was no longer a

game. 'Troubles' was getting really annoyed by being tricked.

As they walked, Marie Therese noticed a piece of snow move along

with them. It was the rabbit ready to tease the little dog again! The girl

broke off a twig from a nearby tree and threw it, frightening the creature

away.


The rabbit ran into a group of spruce trees. Marie Therese entered the

woods. If the snow was not too deep, she would collect the gum that

formed on their trunks. She had brought along her collecting bag as there

was always something to bring home from the woods.


She walked on the hard crust without sinking. She chopped and

picked at the sticky gum with her thumb and ended up with a good supply

of spruce gum. She put all but one piece in her bag. That one she put in her

mouth. At first, it was difficult to chew. I t seemed to be falling apart.

She continued to chew until it became real gum. How pleased her mother

would be! Her mother said spruce gum exercised and strengthened the

jaw and was good for the teeth.


'Troubles' had disappeared and Marie Therese followed heard his

bark and sounds until she was near. There he was with the strangest little

animals she had ever seen! Trouble's tail wagged proudly at having

discovered something of his own. It wasn't long before Marie Therese

found out what they were when a porcupine appeared to protect the

babies. The girl tried to warn her dog but he was far too busy wagging his

tail and poking the little things in a friendly way. The porcupine, thinking

that Troubles might hurt her babies, attacked.

Poor Troubles! He was full of quills and howled with pain. He wouldn't

allow Marie Therese to touch him and ran all the way home crying, the

way dogs cry.


Marie Therese's Daddy saw what had happened when they returned

home. He took out his pliers and pulled the quills out, one by one. After the

operation was over, Marie Therese bathed the dog and wrapped him

carefully in a blanket. He went off to sleep and Marie Therese watched as

his feet moved as if in a dance. Perhaps he was still chasing the rabbit. Or

maybe he was listening to her warning and was running away. Whatever

adventures he was now having, were in his dreams.


-8-

A Secret Place


The ice had completely disappeared in French village on the Miramichi.

Though the sun was warm, the air was cool. As always after the ice

opened each season, it took at least three weeks for the village to warm

up.


The pussy willows had been out for some time. Marie Therese

decided to go picking where she could find shelter from the wind. Usually

there were plenty of spots near the hidden river. It was a place not often

visited and Marie Therese never ceased to be amazed that she could find

it.


She collected a big bunch of willows and stroked the soft pussy-like

buds against her cheek. She walked on and before she realised it, she was

standing facing the little river. It looked so alive, the way rivers do that is.

It seemed happy to be free of the heavy blanket of ice that covered it during

the winter. It flowedso quickly over the rocks on its bed that it splashed

into sprays that seemed to rise and dance in the air.


Trout jumped around in the water. They seemed to jump to

see which one could jump the highest. Marie Therese laughed. There was

one that not only jumped the highest but could do a somersault in mid-air.

It was delightful! Soon she discovered that all the that not all the fish were

alive. On the bank she noticed several salmon lying motionless. They had

been caught and left by anglers. She put aside the pussy willows and ran

over to where they were. Five or six salmon were still breathing. Their

gills opened and closed with a heavy beat-like motion and their eyes

blinked. They were caught and left to die.


The little girl ran to a tree and pulled off a branch. She placed the fish

on it and floated it along the water, making sure she had a firm grip on the

bough. She held on hoping they would wiggle back to life. Watching them,

she realised that they were black salmon, fish trapped in the river by the ice

when winter arrived early last year.


Marie Therese's arm ached, not from the weight of the branch, but

from the fact that her arm was held outstretched. She let go and the jerky

movement upset the sick fish. They were gone. Marie Therese sighed.

Looking in the water she realised that even if they remained lifeless, they

were at home somewhere in the little hidden river, a place they belonged.



-9-


In Trouble Again

The fishing boats set sail in French village early in the morning. All

the villagers watched as the boats, loaded with lobster traps, glided out

and into the distance on Miramichi Bay. Marie Therese felt very happy as

there would be a feed of lobster in her home that night. She wondered

what she would do until the boats arrived back at sunset. She walked

around the wharf with her dog Troubles lagging behind. There was

something especially good about seeing traps, markers and buoys piled

high on the dock. It was good to hear the boats squeak as the choppy little

waves rocked them in and out, stretching and loosening the rope as they

did so.


Marie Therese climbed down the ladder and boarded one of the

boats. Troubles barked. He couldn't jump. It was too high. He made such a

noise barking that Marie Therese climbed up and walked home. She

played on the swings in the backyard. It was a long day for Marie Therese.


She spent most of the day wondering about the time. She watched the

sun. It seemed forever before it changed its position and the day took on a

new colour. At last it was time to go back to the dock and wait.



The boats arrived with a good lobster catch. The men chatted and

laughed with delight. Marie Therese went down the ladder and boarded

her father's boat. There were hundreds of lobsters. They were not pretty as

they crawled slowly over each other in the pit of the boat.


Left on the dock, Troubles ran back and forth, barking and wagging

his tail. He wanted to join Marie Therese but she was too busy to pay any

attention to him. His cries turned to howls , attracting the attention of a

fisherman who tried to reach for him. The little dog backed away and took

a leap. The fisherman caught him but then fell back himself and Troubles,

caught off balance, fell into the pit with the lobsters. Poor little Troubles!

He was so bewildered. Every time he moved, some part of him was

snapped at by the many claws around and beneath him. Marie Therese

stretched out her hand but she couldn't stretch far enough to reach him.

Finally, her father jumped into the pit , picked him up and handed him to

Marie Therese.


The little girl cuddled and sympathised with him until his cries faded

to a quiet moan. The fisherman sold their catch. Troubles, on his feet

again, looked into the bucket of lobsters Marie Therese carried. He looked

but he was very careful not to go close enough even for a good sniff!



-10-


Treasure from Long Ago


The fishermen were out in the bay checking on their lobster catch off

the French village on the Miramichi. Marie Therese stood watching and

praying from the shore bank that the traps would be loaded. Fishing had

been slow lately. Marie Therese's father had been so discouraged that he

hardly spoke now and he was usually a very talkative man. There was no

use waiting for the boats to return. The wait would be too long. The little

girl walked back home. She arrived to hear Troubles' excited barking from

the barn. She decided he must have spotted a mouse. She ran over and

sure enough, the little dog was running into the hay searching for

something. When he wiggled out and discovered Marie Therese, the dog

wiggled, then barked and went on with his search,


Marie Therese wandered around the old barn. She climbed up into

the loft where she found hay and lamps, books and picture frames

discarded by her mother. She examined an old Aladdin Lamp. The lamp

had belonged to her Grandpapa. They were used before electricity came

into French Village.


Marie Therese carried the Aladdin lamp down the loft ladder. It was

a difficult climb down and she was relieved to reach ground level with the

lamp still in one piece. She ignored Troubles and ran to show her discovery

to Ma Mere, her mother. Marie Therese could have the lamp. She then set

about carefully washing it down and polishing it up until its silver

gleamed. It was beautiful. Ma Mere filled it with oil and when night fell,

she would be permitted to light it.

She ran down to the water. The fishermen had returned and Marie

Therese could tell by the happy expressions on their faces that their traps

had yielded a rich catch of lobster.


Her father's good humour returned. The evening was filled with

chatter and laughter. When the curtains of night crossed and met in the sky

above, Marie Therese lit her Aladdin lamp. It gave off a bright glow, as

bright as any of the electric light bulbs used but much softer and prettier.

Though she knew the value of electricity, it was exciting to bring

something from the past into the present.






-11-

The Boat Festival

People in French Village on Miramichi Bay were busy preparing for

the blessing of the fleet. It was a big day for the villagers. Marie Therese

could hardly wait to put on her pretty new cotton dress. Her mother had

made it out of a fine print. Relatives arrived from the city for the occasion;

an aunt, uncle and a little boy cousin. The boy's name was Pierre. He was

full of energy. In fact, he was so full of energy that he tired out Marie

Therese. She had never tired of playing before. Perhaps it was the way

Pierre played. He touched all the delicate ornaments in the house, making

the grown-ups nervous. He boasted of being able to climb through a crack

in the window pane. It was so ridiculous the little girl didn't bother to

argue with him.


Troubles hid when Pierre was around. It was no wonder

because the boy pulled the dog's tail and yanked at his fur. He poked his

eyes and squeezed his neck. Poor Troubles just stayed out of the way now.

He hid under the big chair watching the active child sadly, not knowing

what to expect next.



Marie Therese found Pierre lovable in many ways. He had a way of

smiling that made people forgive him anything. He had a cute way of

saying things. It was his curiosity, she decided, that made him the way he

was. It could be that is the way little boys learn.


Marie Therese felt proud in her new dress when the day finally came

that she was allowed to wear it. Down at the docks, grownups wandered

close to the platform to hear speeches while she stayed behind on the side

of the dock road with Pierre. They were too little to see above the crowd so

the climbed on one of the vessels. Once aboard, they were helped up to the

top of the cabin roof. All the boats were decorated with gay triangle flags

and paper flowers. The boats were clean. The scum and scales of fish had

been scrubbed from their decks.


Marie Therese was so busy looking that she didn't notice Pierre slip

away. He was such a quick little boy that she just looked away for a minute

and he was gone. She panicked and jumped down to the deck and walked

the plank to the wharf. Pierre was nowhere in sight. She looked over the

edge and there he was, halfway down the ladder to the sea.


Marie Therese reached down but she couldn't get a grip on his arms.

The little boy started crying. A man, hearing the cries, looked over, pushed

the little girl aside and brought Pierre safely up. He was quiet for the first

time since his arrival in the village and actually looked exhausted. They

waited for their parents and when they arrived the little boy was taken

home and put to bed. Marie Therese, able to relax again, looked down at

her new dress. It was covered in tar. She cried and her mother took her

hand in hers and led her to the shore where cut bullrushes were piled.

Taking one in each hand, they dipped them in oil and lit them from the

flames of a bonfire. The whole shoreline became alight with torches.

People formed a line for miles. Marie Therese forgot about her stained

dress and joined in on the songs and laughter of the crowd.


-12-


Pierre the Hero


The dog cried. He would have been crushed only for Pierre who had

rescued him from the big crane that lifted him along with a pile of rubble,

Pierre, Marie Therese and Troubles, the dog, had been playing at the

construction yard in French Village on the Miramichi. It was a place where

little people and dogs had no business being. The big working machinery

made them curious , made them forget the danger of taking a closer look.


The big machine lifted Troubles up. He had been in the way. It

emptied all the rubble into a truck. Everything dropped out except for

Troubles. He was caught and was hanging between the teeth on the

mouth of the crane. Pierre climbed the big machine to warn the operator

not to bite for more rubble. He made it to the operator just in time to save

the dog's life.


Marie Therese left Troubles snugly wrapped in a blanket on the

kitchen floor. She was so grateful to Pierre that she would see that he

received a special gift for his heroic deed.


She headed down the shore road in French Village . When she

spotted Simon Levesque she quickened his pace. Simon was the village

chiseller or wood carver and he was out sketching seagulls on the snow-

covered beach. She walked quietly so as not to disturb the flock that flew

nearby.


Finally she reached him. He no longer had the sketch book in his

hand. He was now carving wood. He showed no sign of noticing her

presence. He just carved away, the wood chips falling on his clothes and

on the ground. He only took time out to spit the juice of his tobacco. He

chewed almost continuously.


Marie Therese finally found the courage to disturb him by a pat on

the shoulder. "She told the carver of the rescue in the construction yard,

saying how Pierre was so brave and that he deserved a special present.

She said that as Simon's birds were the most special carvings of their kind,

she wondered if they could make a trade. She unfolded her kerchief

showing a collection of bird eggs.


The wood carver made no comment. His face showed no sign of

interest. Marie Therese was trying to think of something else she could

swap when the old man placed a completed wooden gull in her hand. It

was so lifelike that she could imagine it taking off into flight,


She held it firmly in her fist and headed back to the village but not

before waving to the wood carver.



-13-

Reunion

Every year since Maria Therese could remember, and that wasn't

long as the old ones kept reminding her, there was a big family reunion.

Acadians had large families but Marie Therese thought hers must be the

largest family ever. There was no place big enough to hold the dinner for

the reunion so they had to put up an enormous tent


It seemed that Ma Mere and the other women in French Village had

been cooking forever. Actually, they had started over a month ago baking

meat pies, buns and sweet squares. The kitchen was filled with comforting

smells. Marie Therese tried to help but she just ended up covered in flour

and dropping things. She thought she was doing well until her mother

shoo-shooed her from the kitchen. Troubles probably had something to do

with it. He jumped up on her when she was pouring flour. She missed and

Troubles went off, leaving little white tracks all over the house.


When all the goodies were ready and cooled, they were packaged up

and frozen. The huge freezers were also filled with all kinds of fish and

shellfish. Emptied plastic containers held icy blueberries, strawberries and

raspberries.


Many people were coming from a long way away, from a place

called Louisiana. It was in the United States. They all had the same last

name except some of them sometimes pronounced it in an English way.

Marie Therese always enjoyed meeting her American family. They were so

exotic. They called themselves "Cajuns", instead of Acadians and spoke

French in a slow way that made you think of heat, alligators and naps in

beds with mosquito netting. Ma Mere said that these Americans used to

live here but moved south over a hundred years ago. They didn't look that

old! Anyway, Marie Therese liked to look at their big cars and mobile

homes. Their music was lively.


Tonight was the last night of the reunion. Marie Therese always

liked this night. Children were allowed to stay up late. It was the night of

the big dance.


P'tit Bertrand got out his fiddle, Jean-Claude was on the accordion,

Norbert on the piano and Louis on guitar. One old man played the spoons.

Another got up to do a step-dance. Mademoiselle Mae got up and sang a

slow song.


Marie Therese was sitting beside a woman from Louisiana that she

had met the previous year. She called her Tante Sophie. The two had

taken to each other at once. Sophie fascinated Marie Therese with tales of

the swamp while, in return, she seemed genuinely interested in her account

of ordinary life in the village.


"Will you write to me?" asked Tante Sophie.


"Yes of course." Marie Therese put her arms around the large

woman and hugged her. When she pulled away, she noticed a tear slowly

dropping down the cheek of Aunt Sophie.


"You are a lucky little girl to live in this place, cherie. We never

wanted to leave, you know. We had to go."

Marie Therese had always thought that life in French Village was a

bit hard. The winters could be cruel , no one was rich and they had to

work hard. She looked around and saw her mother and father smiling at

each other as they danced. Outside, a million stars broke out on a black

sky. She could faintly hear the sound of water lapping on the shore and a

breeze rustling through the trees. She thought she could understamd

what it would mean to lose this. Even for a big car and alligators.


"Yes, I guess it is a special place," she thought.


The dog, Troubles, jealous of the attention she was giving to Sophie,

jumped up. She gave him a hug and another to Aunt Sophie, happy to be

together at that time and at that place.


Copyright Nonie Creaghan