Cape Breton's Magazine

ter that. And a truckful of goods came, including toys for all the children. The Christmas was the best they had had so far, with food, warmth, and toys. Annie and John stayed here through two winters. Eleanor and Thomas went to Long? fellow School in Houlton by bus. Eut Annie and John decided to move to Houlton so that they could get the religious training needed for the children. Warm, Friendly Cape Breton Atmosphere Monday to Friday 7:30 am to 4:30 pm -Very Reasonable Prices- Breakfast & Lunch Specials Daily 191 Charlotte Street, Sydney Fresh Baked Goods Daily SUMMERTIME PRODUCTIONS SOCIETY presents FEATURING: Richard Burke Steve Gaetz Berkley Lamey Fred Lavery Bette MacDonald Max MacDonald Doris Mason Maynard Morrison Krista Touesnard Tara Lynn Touesnard DIRECTOR: Sandra Balcovske MUSICAL DIRECTOR: Leon Dubinsky '93' ANEW MUSIC & COMEDY SHOW Aug. 2-4 Aug. 6-7 Aug. 8-9 Aug. 11-12 Centre 200 | SAERC | St FX Univ. Centre Bras d'Or Sydney Port Hawkesbury Antigonish Baddeck Aug. 16 IVIoncton N.B. Aug. 19-21 DeCoste Centre Pictou Aug. 22-24 Rebecca Cohn Halifax Cape Breton Island I CANADA/ NOVA SCOTIA I COOPERATION AGREEMENT ON CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT TICKETS ON SALE AT EACH VENUE While in the States. Annie and John contin? ued to speak Mi'kmaq, particularly since Annie could speak very little English. She spoke in Mi'kmaq exclusively to the chil? dren. While in their Mi'kmaq community, El? eanor and Tom both learned to speak Mi'kmaq well; only when they moved and found Eng? lish-speaking children with whom they played did they speak English. As the chil? dren grew up, the children had only their mother to speak Mi'kmaq with. This did not foster fluency in Mi'kmaq. As the children began switching from Mi'kmaq to English, John demanded that they either speak Mi'kmaq or English. The very sound of switching back and forth from the two lan? guages grated on him. So when the last two girls were born and lived most of their years in Maine, they used English as did Tom and Eleanor. They always understood Mi'kmaq but rarely had a chance to use it to attain fluency, so they spoke English. Later, (when) they returned to the Mi'kmaq community, Eleanor and Tom picked up the Mi'kmaq language with some ease while Marie and Gerry struggled with learning to speak their native language. A search for apartments found a two-story grey duplex on 122 Mil? itary Street owned by Mrs. Hanni- gan near the Catholic church. This family home was the home where the children lived for the better part of their childhood. They lived here for over 10 years. It was an old house with three rooms downstairs and three rooms upstairs. A toilet was po? sitioned in the back room al? though a blanket divider made it also another bedroom. A front- room stove and a back-kitchen stove were the only means of heat for the whole house. Eut this house had indoor plumbing, al? beit only cold water; a flushing toilet in the house was great progress. The rooms were large, but it was still small for the family of six. Tom either got the toilet room or the hallway during those years, while the three girls slept together in twin beds. The house was old and the linoleum showed its wear, but the family frequently papered, painted and fixed it up as Annie tried to make this old house warm and accommodating. On the other side of the duplex house lived the large family of Ruth and Woodrow Estabrook. In the house next to the duplex was a brown house rented by a Maliseet woman Eleanor Erooks. During those years John worked periodi? cally as a labourer at the new St. Mary's Church in Houlton or on Aug. 14 Saint John N.B. Aug. 26-28 Savoy Theatre Glace Bay