swamp rose may 2016

Swamp Rose Tea

Swamp Rose

La Manche des Rosiers

Two weeks ago I transcribed this where the people of Ville Platte remembered that Cherokee Roses grew thickly on both sides of the lane going to Tate Cove, and that it was called la manche des rosiers, the lane of the roses.

Today on my drive back from a birthday party at my cousin's in Whiteville, I cut across the cove on Rue de Coton and hit Tate Cove Road where I knew they had called it la manche des rosiers dans les années passées, and sure enough, all along the road after the Theophile Road, there you can see the grosses fleurs blanches and éronces verts of the fabled cherokis rose.

les cherokis

les éronces gone à l'anse de Tate

A Trip to New Iberia

The Rosary House

Our Lady of the Rosary House

No Hand Mary

Across the Street

Lourdes Grotto on "Shadow Street"

Petitions and Offerings in the Grotto

In Memory of the Pioneer Families of New Iberia and in gratitude to God for His abundant blessings to the Teche Country.

Charming the Ladies at Victor's

Of course a trip to the New Iberian Teche Country wouldn't be complete without pulling over, putting the truck in 4 wheel drive in a soybean field, and digging up wild Cherokee roses by hand! Talk about tear your hands up, but I had been scouting the ditches of Acadiana for them all spring, and there, in New Iberia with my tolerant best friend Marie, I found the prize that was accessible. Marie said it was o.k. with her. She used to pull over with her grandmother to dig up wild Louisiana Irises, and "now her yard is full of them."

Roses via the Tasse Cafe

A Rose
Tu dis en français une rose!
Rose of Sharon: un Althea 
A dwarf rose, ça appelle ça un cinq-sous!
A moss rose, une mousse fleur, ça dit.
Cherokee rose, on est familieux avec ça
les grandes talles d'éronces, les cherokis!
Around Grand Prairie ça appellait ça
la Manche des Cherokis
because there were lot of those roses that were used as a fence because it was so thick the cattle couldn't pass through.

Nous-autres on restait
Là àyou Cameron est asteur,
et le chemin de l'Anse de Tate jusqu'à Cameron
Ça appellait ça la manche des rosiers
C'était les grosses fleurs blanches
les éronces épais, oh yes!
Les fleurs était blanches...
Ça me suprenais pas s'il ya toujours quelque pieds de ça là dedans c't manche là, mais asteur c'est un chemin! C'est tout changé asteur.
Asteur c'est pu un lane! 
Ça appellait ça Brésil dans ses temps là.
Ça change, tout!
Asteur y'a le chemin Theophile.
Mais la Manche des Rosiers té après le chemin Theophile.

Écoute, les cherokis!? You can still find some on the railroad tracks.