When Apples Grew Noses and White Horses Flew: Tales of Ti-Jean
A Word About Ti-Jean As soon as you start going from one of these stories to another you’ll realize Ti-Jean is a hero unlike most others He turns up in different times and places He gets married at the end of one tale He’s on a quest for a bride at the beginning of the next His mother is dead No she isn’t It’s his father He’s wise he’s foolish The only thing he isn’t ever is rich So you’ll be asking who is he The answer is he’s part of a long long tradition a lot like Jack in English fairy tales He changes because we change and really he’s all about us the difficulties we get into and the adventures we’re bound to have Many many people have created stories about him over the years They’ve told those stories around fires and in logging camps in countryside and in town They’ve remembered those stories perhaps not quite exactly but what they have remembered they’ve passed on What does that say I think it says that if you have an urge to tell a Ti-Jean story or make one up you should do it but you should also be careful to share that story with someone else
JAN ANDREWS
Ti-Jean and the Princess of Tomboso Cric crac Parli parlons parlo If you won’t listen Out you go L ÉTAIT UNE FOIS Which is to say There was once There was once a farmer That farmer had come to the New World from France in a ship with great white sails He was just like everyone else who had chosen to journey here He was searching for a better life He lived on a narrow strip of land running down to a river All of the farms in that part of the country were narrow strips All of them ran down to rivers so everyone could have a proper share of water and an easier way of getting about The work of the farm was hard It did not exactly bring the farmer the riches he had hoped for but he was content enough He had three sons and whenever they were worried about what the future might bring he always said
Go into the barn he told them Far at the back deep under the hay you’ll find a chest That chest contains three objects one for each of you I’ll give you the key now but if you care about me you’ll wait until I am dead to use it The sons did wait They nursed their father and tended to him They made sure he had a fine funeral with all of the neighbors to pray for his soul At last however the funeral was over I believe we can look in the chest now the oldest son announced When I came from the Old Country I brought gifts that I have saved for you When I die you will have them When you have the gifts you’ll have nothing to worry about Time passed and the farmer grew old He grew sick and took to his bed He called his sons to him They went into the barn all three of them together They dug into the hay at the back Sure enough the chest was there as their father had told them it would be The oldest brother put the key in the lock and turned it The second lifted the lid The third just watched and waited His name was Ti-Jean He wasn’t as quick off the mark as the other two They didn’t think much of his chances in the world Inside the chest were three objects just as their father had said One was a purse one was a bugle one was a belt The
