Page 46 - From Breton Cove and Boston: Conversations with Josie Matheson Bredbury Part 2

ISSUE : Issue 57

Published by Ronald Caplan on 1991/6/1

I started first by myself. I took her foot, her heel, and I start rubbing. I'd rub some on her heel. And didn't say any? thing to anybody. If it would work the way it did with the little one here, I'd tell them. And so anjrway, this started to heal. And so I said to myself, "I think I'll go to Granny (first)." And I told her I had something to confess. And I took her down and showed her this. She said, "Let it be our secret for awhile." So then we put it on her bum, and I think it was on her shoulder. And in due time, it started to heal. (Mary Frances) came along fine.... (Is taking care of children pretty well the only kind of work you did, over and over again?) Yeah. Pretty near the same thing. (That's a very specialized job.) Oh, yeah, I love it. (How did you come to be focussed upon that job, instead of working in a de? partment store or cleaning houses or....) I really don't know. Unless it was, I took care of my younger sisters and brothers at home. Because my mother had to be out help? ing my father in the fields in the summer? time, so she had to leave somebody to take care of the kids at home. And see there was from Annie down--there was Annie, Roddy, Kenny, Jimmy, and Evelyn. There were 5 of them there. Evelyn was a little baby. And then we had my father's uncle. Uncle Iain. And he was my mother's babysitter, really. If I didn't know what to do, he was there. He was better than a woman. Skye Motor Hotel and Licensed Restaurant 48 Comfortable Units * Free Colour Pay-TV (902)625-1300 P.O.Box 190 PORT HASTINGS n,s.boe2to - Open All Year at the Canso Causeway - really, and he wasn't married--he never married. He'd get the dinner ready for her, and when it was noontime--we had this bugle thing, it was about this long, with a thing at the end. And you'd blow into it. So he'd start from the youngest one-- each one up the line--let them try to blow the thing, you know. And then he'd give two toots on that, my father and mother'd hear it, and it was time for them to come home. There was no such thing as watches those days, for that crowd of people, you know. The first watch Papa had was his Un? cle Jimmy's--it was sent to him--the uncle who was in the war (and died in World War One)--his watch was sent to him. It was one of those on the chain. (Would your mother take the infants with her to the field?) Yeah. If we were raking and we'd be gone for a long time, we'd take probably--well, we'd always leave the baby with Uncle Iain--he'd take care of the baby.... I married soon after I left little Mary Frances. (So first you did a little bit of work in a restaurant.) About a week and a half, or 10 days. And then I went with a family, and I was with them for 10 years. And then I got married. I had the 3 chil? dren. And I had my (grandchildren)--and then Frayne (died--Josie's husband).... Then, I don't know who was the first baby, firstborn I went to. And I liked that. I liked the firstborn. Oh, it was heavenly. And then I went from there--there'd be about 10 days between. I'd take this one, and I'd be there a week, or 10 days, or two weeks, whichever they wanted. And then I'd go to another one. Maybe I'd be home for a night or two. I was on the go all the time. I went 3 different times out to Washington, D. C, to this same family. They flew me out BUILDING SUPPLIES 21 McKeen Street, Glace Bay Our Carpet & Paint Displays are ail set up... Waiting For You! Our Hardware and Building Supplies are arriving daily. Come and visit us in our bright new surroundings. HARDWARE, BUILDING SUPPLIES, CARPETS & VINYL FLOORING BENJAMIN MOORE PAINT, BONNEVILLE WINDOWS K's'l'lpm 849-0047 849-1100 U-DO CRAFT SUPPLIES LOCAL CRAFTS WICKER AND WOOD Crafts & Supplies AND MUCH MUCH MORE! Drop In and, enjoy our large selection for your personal use or for gifts. i. w 1818 KING'S ROAD, SYDNEY B1P6G5 O 564-9877 Need a Radiator? Muffler? Shocks? Brakes? RAD-PRO Sydney: 562-2300 • 46 TWO LOCATIONS: Sydney 349 George St. - Downtown AND Port Hawkesbury Maclnnes Road at Port Hawkesbury: 625-3781 Port Hawkesbury Centre Sydney: 539-6691 Specializing in Radiator Repair & Recores Heaters Water Pumps, Etc. Specializing in Mufflers Brakes Shocks MASTER MUFFLER Springs r'm Port Hawkesbury: 625-3781

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