Trinbagonians talk. (135) The Creepy Sounds Bamboo Makes on a Windy day.

Picture yuh self walkin’ on a long, long road. In de distance, de road look like it is goin’ up a little hill. On de right side an’ on de left side of de road, it hav’ tall, tall trees. De trees does block de sun, so de place look a bit dark an’ dismal. When yuh look at de trees on de left side of de road, yuh go see some bamboo trees. On de right side of de road before de trees, there is a small drain. Yuh could hear water runnin’ in de drain. When yuh reach half of de way to de end of de road, an’ yuh look back, all yuh could see is trees in de distance. Ah was de only person on de road, so ah did walk as fast as ah could. While ah was walkin’, ah could feel a nice breeze start to blow an’ de leaves on de trees start swishin’. De breeze start blowin’ strong, strong an’ de branches on de trees start to sway. All of ah sudden, ah hear like somebody was cryin’ and then moanin’ an’ groanin’. De hair on meh han’ stan’ up an’ ah start to run, buh de sound of de moanin’ and de groanin’did get real loud. When ah reach de little hill, ah stood an’ ah take a deep breath. Then, ah walk real fass up de little hill. As ah reach up ah was shock to see dat de sun was shinin’ bright, bright an’ plenty people was walkin’ about. When ah see one of meh  frens, ah tell she wat ah did hear an’ how frighten ah was. Meh fren start to laugh at me an’ ah ask she why she laughin’. Meh fren say, “How yuh could forget dat bamboo does cry? It does even groan an’ moan when de place windy. Ah know when de wind blow, de bamboo trees an’ dey start to rub together, it does sound like somebody cryin’.”

Imagine you are walking along a long stretch of road. In the distance, the road looks like it is heading up an incline. On the right side and the left side of the road, there were tall trees and they blocked out the sun, so the place looked a little dark and gloomy. When you look at the trees on the left side of the road, you could see some bamboo trees. On the right side of the road before the trees, there was a small drain. You could hear water running through the drain. When you reach half of the way towards the end of the road, and you look back, all you could see in the distance are trees. I was the only person on the road, so I walked as fast as I could. While I was walking, a gentle breeze started blowing and the leaves on the trees started rustling. The breeze starting blowing stronger and the branches on the trees started to sway. Suddenly, I heard a cry and then moaning and groaning. My pores raised, so I started to run. The sound of the moaning and groaning was getting louder. When I got to the incline, I stood and took a deep breath. Then, I walked quickly to the top. I was surprised that the sun was shining brightly and many people were walking about. I saw one of my friends and I told her how scared I was because of what I heard.  She started to laugh and I asked her why she was laughing. She said, “How come you forget that bamboo makes a groaning and moaning sound when it is blown by the wind? You forget that bamboo rubs together, and the friction makes it sound as though someone is crying.”

 

Trinbagonians talk. (134) Soucouyant--- Soo-coo-yah is our most Popular Folklore Character.

 

We use to go out in de night, buh we mind use to be on de folklore characters. In every neighborhood in Trinbago, there is someone who was branded to be one of we folklore characters. De most talk about character was de Soocooyah. Every day, somebody always had somet’ing to say about de neighborhood Soocooyah. When someone get up in de morning an’ dey see red an’ purplish marks on their body, dey does say de person who was judge to be a Soocooyah, suck their blood de night before.

At nights, we went out, but thoughts about our folklore characters used to be on our minds. There was always someone in every neighborhood in Trinidad and Tobago, who was deemed to be one of our folklore characters. The most popular character was the Soucouyant; every day someone always had something to say about the neighborhood Soucouyant. On mornings when a person woke up, and they see red and purplish marks on their body, they would say the person who was judged to be a Soucouyant, sucked their blood the night before.

Trinbagonians talk. (133) Some of Trinidad and Tobago Folklore Characters.

 The most talked about folklore characters of Trinidad and Tobago: Douen --Their feet are turned backwards. They tempt children when the moon is full.          La Diablesse-(Lah-ja-bless)— The devil’s bride. Her feet are cloven. She wears a large straw hat that covers her face. She encourages men to follow her.   Lugarhoo-(Lag-gah-hoo)--- A person who changes themselves into an animal. They can make themselves very big or very small. They also rattle or drags a chain late in the night.  Soucouyant-(Soo-coo-yah)--- An old hag who turns herself into a ball of fire. She sucks the blood from her victim.  Pappa Bois--- Half man and half animal who is very hairy. He rescues animals from hunters.  

Trinbagonians talk. (132) Watch Your step.

Doh forget to look down when yuh walkin’. Make sure de place for yuh to walk is not bumpy. It hav’ many rough an’ dig-up sidewalks an’ roads so walkin’ can be unsafe. Long time, we parents use to tell we to stop walkin’ wit we head down an’ we should walk wit we head up high. Today is a different story. Yuh does hav’ to make sure yuh watch whey yuh walkin’, odderwise yuh could get hurt.

Remember when you are walking look down to make sure the path for your feet is level, no stumbling blocks. There are so many uneven sidewalks and roads (potholes etc.) so walking can be perilous. Gone were the days when our parents stopped us from walking with our head down. They used to tell us to walk with our head held up high. Today you don’t have a choice but to make sure your path is clear. If you do not watch your step, you could hurt yourself badly.

Trinbagonians talk. (131) If it is Budding You will get Bush Tea.

During breakfast an’ dinner time meh breddas, sisters an’ me always use to get a real nice cup of Milo, Ovaltine, homemade hot chocolate or Cocoa tea to drink. We didn’t kno’ dat we fadder use to watch we to see how much we does drank at breakfast time. He use to do dat because one night, in every week, we go get de same size cup, full of bush tea. De bush tea use to be made from bush meh fadder did plant in he garden. He use to bring home a set of bush an’ say to we mudder, “Boil dis bush for dem children.” We use to all grumble, but it did not help. De bush tea was made from, Bois Canon (Bwah-kah-no), Lime-bud, Malomay, Portugal-bud, soursop-bud, guava-bud an’ plenty odder kinds of bush. We mudder use to boil de bush an’ sweeten it. When we sit down by de dinin’ table, a cup full of bush tea was put in front of we along wit we meal. Meh fadder use to hav’ a little smile on he face when he see how vex we face use to be.

At breakfast and dinner, my siblings and I used to get a nice hot cup of Milo, Ovaltine, homemade hot chocolate or Cocoa. My father used to pay close attention to how much we drank because one night, in every week, we were going to get the same size cup, full of local herb tea. These herbs were from my father’s garden. He would say to my mother, “Make this tea for those children.” We all complained, but it did not help. It was either, Bois Canon (Bwah-kah-no), Lime-bud, Malomay, Portugal-bud, soursop-bud, guava-bud and many other herbs. Our mother used to boil the herbs and sweeten the tea. When we sat down at the dining table, a cup full of herb tea was put in front of us along with our meal. My father used to have a little smile on his face when he saw how upset our face used to look.