Tag Archives: trinidadian

Trinidadian Proverb

AGE: 19

Date of performance: 02/20/2025

Language: English

Nationality: American

Occupation: Student 

Primary Language: English

Title- Beat de Iron while it Hot

Context- C shares with me a cherished Trinidadian phrase his grandma, G-ma, from Trinidad tells him— ‘Beat de Iron while it Hot’. C says “It means to always seize the moment, don’t wait and linger. Take those risks take those challenges. My G-ma told me this when I got into USC and was nervous about leaving family, seize that moment”.

Analysis- Within the folk world, proverbs are metaphorical phrases that carry advice or a general truth through their unique, short structure. ‘Beat de Iron while it Hot’ is a familial, cultural variation of the well known ‘Strike an Iron while it’s hot’ proverb. Like many elements of folklore such as motifs, proverbs can be changed based on where they are used in around the world, but ultimately carry the same meaning. ‘Beat de Iron while it Hot’ conveys that when an opportunity arises, it should be seized and taken advantage of just as a smith would shape an iron when it is hot because that is the optimal time to do so.

Cure for the Hiccups

Nationality: Trinidadian
Age: 58
Occupation: Housekeeper, Nanny
Residence: Chicago, IL
Performance Date: 04/05/15
Primary Language: English

The informant is a 58-year old woman from Trinidad, who has lived in the United States for 45 years. She was raised by her parents in Trinidad and lived in a house with her parents, grandparents, and nine siblings. She attended primary school, and then began working as a housekeeper and nanny. She loves cooking, mainly without recipes or set amounts of any ingredients, having learned her recipes “from my mom and aunts and from trial and error.” The following is a cure for hiccups that she shared with me.

 

Informant: “When you have the hiccups, take a piece of cotton—you can use a cotton ball, that works well, or you can even use tissue if you don’t have any cotton—and get it wet. Not soaking, but wet enough. Then place it on your forehead, a little above your eyebrows.”

Interviewer: “And that’s all?”

Informant: “Well, you hold it there for a minute, or even a few minutes. And the hiccups should go away.”

Interviewer: “Where did you learn that?”

Informant: “My grandma told me to do it when I was younger. And it worked. It always worked. So I kept doing it. And it always works, I don’t know why but it does.”

 

Thoughts:

The power of belief is amazing! I have actually tried this remedy to alleviate the hiccups and it has worked all three times I have tried it. I doubt it is from the wet cotton but rather from my belief in its potency that stops the hiccups. This is something like the placebo test in its effective nature despite lack of “scientific” evidence.

Hiccups are a sort of naturally occurring phenomena–it makes sense that there are such a vast array of remedies for this common ailment, so to speak. While homeopathic magic often seems silly at first glance, or roundabout, it was so interesting to read about how so much modern medicine — 80% of it in fact–comes from remedies known to indigenous people; a lot of the medicines that cure ailments and illnesses, even diseases as pervasive and previously considered deadly as cancer (such as the rosie periwinkle plant native to Madagascar is known to be able to do with Leukemia), come about from bio prospecting folk remedies.