My Grandma Élodie
Iron Age Media Prompt: The Inspector
It was an sweltering late spring day—where the typical humidity combined with scorching heat—when my sisters and I were at Grandma and Pop-Pop's house. School was out for the summer, so we spent the days here while Mom and Dad were out working.
We were ambling about the house, when found Grandma Élodie in the den going through some books that were stacked up near the chair by the window underneath a picture that looked like Grandma when she was young. She was slender, beautiful, decked out in military uniform adorned with a medal and a few patches. Her hair full of curls—the kind that couldn't survive this humidity. It was odd picturing Grandma in the military back then, and nobody in the family ever talked about those days, so we know little about Grandma at this point. Whenever the girls got too curious and asked too many questions, Pop-Pop would always say "Cheries1, don't you go worryin' about that. It ain't nothin' grand." The boys were just told "Peu importe2" and shooed away.
But with the picture in full focus, we just had to ask about it again. "Grandma, why did you join the military? We always see this picture, but nobody ever talks about it! Was it bad?"
Grandma Élodie looked at the picture and laughed. "Oh no, there was nothing bad about it. Oh sure, when I joined, my mom and dad didn't like it when I told them… but no, sweetheart. It was fine!"
I asked Grandma why it was wrong for her to enlist. "Oh, well, you probably think it was because I was a girl, but actually no. See, when I was a little older than you all, I had it in my mind to leave my hometown and make a new life. I had this boyfriend who wanted to see the world, and he thought joining the military would get him there 'cause of the war and all. Since we were gonna get married, I said I'd enlist too."
"Was that Pop-Pop?" I asked about the boyfriend.
"Oh dear, no!" Grandma giggled. "No, this was a boy from high school. He was a year older than me, and after finishing high school, he saw he was turning into a drifter. Life wasn't working out for him my last year of high school, and he needed a way to pull himself together."
My older sister, who just finished her first year of high school, asked her, "So, what happened when you joined?"
"Well, my parents said I shouldn't be following a boy who didn't have his life together. The only thing I was gonna see was sorrow followin' him around. But when I joined, we didn't get to see much of each other. We signed up, and after an evaluation, they gave us a choice of jobs we could do. For him, I think he wanted to get into piloting or something like that. So, we eventually saw less and less of each other once he started aviation training. All my choices were in logistics—because of my analytical scores—and healthcare. Most of the girls went for healthcare, so I chose logistics. That kept us separated and busy for awhile. Once he was transferred, we tried to write each other, but it didn't last for more than a few months. I think he ended up meeting another woman, so our wedding never happened!"
"Was it hard finding someone after that?" asked my younger sister.
"No… it seemed the boys had a thing for brunettes with green eyes. I turned a few heads in my uniform, especially since you weren't going to find many women in logistics. In fact, about a year or so later, when I was stationed across the country, I met this man around the time that picture was taken. Never seen him before, but when I talked to him, he made me feel right at home," Grandma reflected. I asked her what he did. "So, one day he came to me to ask a question. 'Euh, pardon, madamoiselle, but are you running the inspections today? We have a delivery scheduled asteur3, and we've been waitin' awhile.' I hadn't heard my language since I left my hometown."
"Oh, so you met another person who could speak French?" My little sister asked.
"Yes, but only around these parts do you hear people say 'asteur.' The French people up north don't talk that way. What was strange was that I came from a small town—everybody knows everybody. But, I'd never met this man before, and I didn't recognize his last name—it wasn't even French!—, so I didn't know anything about this man or his kin, but he seemed to know my language. So, I asked him, 'Où est-ce que vous venez ?4'" It was a surprise to hear Grandma speaking French without hiding it from us. "And he said, 'Moi, j'ai grandi up à Vermillionville pas loin du Bayou Z'oie, but je suis né there à Haute-Pointe.5' Vermillionville was the main town, so I knew where it was, but we didn't go there often as kids. Anyway, I told him I was from Guidry Bridge, and after some talking, he asked me out to dinner 'après de la termination de notre inspection.6'"
"Did you go out with him!?" My sisters asked.
"Oh, yes, a few times. I got to learn a little about his family history, his goals and aspirations, and I told him about how a silly girl ended up in a uniform inspecting cargo and supply vehicles. He was very attentive, but he asked a question I never expected. He said, 'Tu voudrais retourner chez toi ?7' He was really asking what it would take for me to go back home to Louisiana. I had my mind set on doing whatever I wanted. Going back to la fagne8 wasn't something I ever considered. I said there wasn't a future back home, but he told me ma famille9 was at home, and where family was, there you'd find your future." Grandma smiled as she looked at her younger self in the photo, almost chuckling at the incorrigible young woman. "He smiled and told me one day I'd understand what he meant. I never thought I'd be back in the land whence I came, but he was adamant on proving to me the adventure I craved was going to lead me back home."
My sisters became somewhat somber but curious. "So, what happened with that man?"
Pop-Pop stepped into the doorframe with a smile and said, "Mais enfin, cherie ! T'as compris mes mots !10"
Grandma Élodie smiled back at Pop-Pop, then turned back to us. "You might say I was so captivated by that statement, I decided I'd follow him! And not long after, I became Élodie Yurkin, and we were set on building a real legacy for ourselves. Both in the family we raised and the life we built. Now, that's not to say it wasn't fun being young and seeing everything, but I can say now that my life didn't truly begin until he finally convinced me to go back home."
My little sister then said, "So you and Pop-Pop decided to come back here after you were done in the military?"
Grandma replied, "Eventually, yes. We tried to settle down in a bigger city. Then, we decided to go back home, but I didn't want to go back home, but instead move en ville11. But even then, it wasn't enough, and the swamp called me back home. When we made it back to the swamp, that's when I felt that my life was full again. When we were moving into this house, I saw Pop-Pop carrying this old picture in. I wanted to get rid of it, but he insisted we keep it. He wanted to always appreciate what brought him back home."
Pop-Pop came to us and said, "I've made some glace12 for touts les petits13! Let's get a few scoops in before it starts to melt!" My sisters shouted with joy and ran to the kitchen to get some ice cream. As I was leaving, I turned back to Grandma Élodie, admiring everything that she built with Pop-Pop, quietly rejoicing over "nos bénédictions.14"
My little sister came back in and said, "Grandma! Aren't you going to have some ice cream with us!?"
"Oh, yes, dear." So Grandma and I left her den, enjoying some ice cream and Grandma and Pop-Pop told us more about their lives.
“Dears”
“It’s nothing important.”
Asteur in Louisiana French means “now.”
“Where do you come (from)?”
“I grew up in Vermillionville not far from Bayou Z’oie, but I was born there in Highpoint.”
“After our inspection is done.”
Literally “Would you want to return to your place?”
“The swamp”
“My family”
“Well finally, dear! You understand me!” The second sentence is literally “You understood my words.”
En ville means “to the city,” but in Louisiana French, this expression typically refers to New Orleans.
“Ice cream”
“All the little ones”
“Our blessings”