The Rescue

Man-Snake as Bridegroom

Der is a woman to court. Every man come to court her, she said she don' want him, till one day she saw a coal-black man, pretty man. 'he said, "O mudder, dis is my courtier!" She tek de man. Breakfas' an' dinner de man don' eat, only suck couple raw egg. So her got a brudder name of Collin. She didn't count de brudder. De brudder tell her, said, "Sister, dat man you gwine to marry to, it is a snake." She said, "Boy, you eber hear snake kyan tu'n a man?" Collin said, "All right! De day you are married, me wi' be in de bush shootin' me bird."

So de weddin' day when de marry ober, de man took his wife, all his weddin' garment, he borrow everyt'ing; so him gwine home, everywhere him go all doze t'ing him borrow, him shed dem off one by one till de las' house he tek off de las' piece an',de Bogie! He walk wid his wife into de wood an' to a cave. He put down his wife to sit down. He tu'n a yellow snake an' sit down in his wife lap an' have his head p'int to her nose to suck her blood to kill her. An de woman sing,

"Collin now, Collin now,
Fe me li'l brudder callin' come o!"


De Snake said,


"Um hum, hum he,
A han'some man you want,
A han'some man wi' kill you."


De woman sing again,


"Collin now, Collin now,
Fe me li'l brudder callin' come o!"


De Snake say,


"Um hum, hum he,
Deh han'some man,
Deh han'some man wi' kill you."


Collin said, "Wonder who singin' me name in dis middle wood?" an' he walk fas' wid his gun. When he come to de cave, de snake-head jus' gwine to touch de woman nose. An' Collin shoot him wid de gun an' tek out his sister. So she never count her brudder till her brudder save her life.



[There are many people, male and female, who make decisions based on the illusions they live by, the assumptions they justify irrational behavior with, and the things they deny. Marriages built upon these things stagger sensibility in the end. But, none of that matters. People love this mess. - Dawn Wolf, Keeper of Stories 10.21.15]