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Tinkers on the Miramichi
By
Kellie Underhill
“Tinker!” a man whoops out the open window
as the strange car crawls past.
My friend and I sneak questioning glances.
“What did he say?” her eyes ask.
“Do you think it’s something negative?” my eyes reply.
This exchange takes place in a single second while the large man laughs and waves at the car.
“That’s what you call us,” Maurice (Bear) Leger grins. “This
is a Tinkers Wagon.”
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| Tinkers Wagon |
In olden times, tinsmiths and their families roamed from job to job throughout the Irish countryside. They became known
as tinkers.
“In the year 2003, I guess the tinkers are hempers,” laughs Lorraine Cloutier.
Lorraine and Bear make and sell all-natural hemp products and crafts. They don’t make much money but they’re
content as long as they have enough to buy hay for their horse and food for the cat and four dogs who travel everywhere with
them.
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| Bear with his horse and one of four dogs |
Their wagon pulled out of Sussex in early May for a trip that will take them from community to community in New Brunswick
as they travel to different festivals and fairs until sometime in October.
Lorraine loves traveling by wagon. It’s planet friendly and forces you to slow down and think.
“I thought I saw the world before — going 60. I didn’t see the world before,” she smiles. “You
haven’t seen the world until you’ve seen it going five.”
Lorraine and Bear worked in tourism for many years at King’s Landing. She worked
in the Kings Head Inn and he was the blacksmith and farrier. They didn’t have any money to retire but they didn’t
have any debt either, so they started thinking about their skills and how they could use them. The Tinkers idea took shape
and the next thing they knew they built their wagon.
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| Bear and Lorraine |
From the time they get up until they go to bed each night, Lorraine says visitors are welcome to drop by for a visit.
She and Bear love meeting people.
They are Keltic musicians and visitors might be entertained by the harp, banjo or many other instruments. They also
carry CDs of their music to sell.
Lorraine says their music is different than a lot of the modern Keltic CDs you hear.
“It’s very old, very historical,” she says. “Some of our songs
are sung in Breton Gaelic.”
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| A peek inside the Tinkers Wagon |
Along the way, where fires were permitted, they did demonstrations on how to bake bread, pies and other things over
an open fire.
That’s the direction they would like to head with this. They hope to do more demonstrations and workshops, to
teach people how to live like their ancestors, make their own medicines and salves, live without the comforts of refrigeration
and other things people have forgotten.
By next summer, they will have a larger wagon with more room to carry all their instruments.
Then they want to get more wagons, so people can travel with them and experience their way of life.
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| "Little Sardine" Antique Stove |
In every community they stop, people flock to see them. Several reporters have written articles about them. They’re
always very popular.
Many people they meet tell them they’ve always dreamed of doing what Lorraine and Bear have done.
“Everyone of us have that little seed, but we’re just not using it,”
Lorraine sighs. “I feel privileged. Nature is our home, and it’s beautiful.”
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| Lorraine loves traveling by wagon |
People often ask if they have an agenda or if there is a message they are trying to get out to the community by living
their lives this way.
“If there is a message it is just for people to stop and think,” she says. “This is beautiful, but
we’re losing it, and each of us has a responsibility for that.”
Look for Lorraine and Bear at their Tinkers wagon across from the Lord Beaverbrook arena
throughout the Irish Festival.
Kellie
Underhill is the editor
of Bread 'n Molasses. Her writing credits include The Moncton Times-Transcript, The Brunswick Business Journal, The
Atlantic Chamber Journal and The Reader magazine. Send comments about this article to editor@breadnmolasses.com.
The Tinkerman's Daughter - An
Irish Ballad Click Here
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