Anna Mentoor – Onthouers | Rememberers
Anna Mentoor was born and raised in Citrusdal, and met her husband when she lived on Noordhoek farm. She has four daughters, to whom she emphasised the value of hard work and taking care of themselves.
Anna Mentoor relates how she laid her children down on pillows under the orchard trees while she worked, stopping to breastfeed them. Growing up was not always an easy time for her, but she remembers it fondly. She speaks of how she feared the waterbaas (water boss) as a child.
Anna Mentoor was born and raised in Citrusdal and was 72 years old at the time of the interview. As a child she moved to Paarl with her family and then moved to Noordhoek, where she met her husband. They have four daughters. She worked in the orchards and took her children with her. She would lay them down in a small crate in the orchards and breastfeed them while she worked. Her children are taught to take care of themselves and their homes. They went to school at Noordhoek.
The people of older generations did not have it easy growing up, but they had a great time. Anna made clothes for herself and her children and taught her children the importance of working hard.
Anna was afraid of the waterbaas (water boss) growing up and told her mother she would not go to the river with the other children because the waterbaas would be looking at her. Anna’s mom let her stay home. She was a stay-at-home kind of child. Anna loved her father terribly, and he would spoil her a lot by telling her she did not have to go to school.
Your name, surname…
How old are you? 72?
72. I say that today.
Say where you were born and from there you can start telling.
Born in Citrusdal. There I was born.
There I was born.
And grew up. The growing-up years…
Grew up. Moved to Paarl with my ma and there grew up further. And then, away from Paarl, out of Paarl, to Noordhoek. Then I found my husband, Broer, then I had my children, four girls, and I worked in the orchard because of the children. They grew up in the orchard. I had a small wooden crate, I put my children in there, and so they… breastfeeding. And so I carried on. And I worked a lot in… I worked for Saai van der Merwe’s ma, now Grieta van der Merwe’s ma. I worked in the orchard in the afternoons because of my children.
And I taught them well, my children. I taught them very, very well, how they should work and how they had to look after my house when I was working, and they did it. And when I came home from work on Saturdays, I was so tired I could only take my cup, take my food. And they were clean, and they were neat, and they were in this – there was a school at Noordhoek, my children studied there.
Hoo, in the old days… I want to tell people today, it was very tough growing op in the old days but it was lekker*. With the one pound ten, the one pound ten my father paid per month, we bought… could buy clothes. I bought fabric for my children with that pound, I made clothes for my children, and by hand at night, and I made clothes for myself. There was no problem. I… enjoyed… and my ma had taught me well. Work. I am, my children, I’m a workhorse with my hand. I work.
Yes, Sir. But swimming… I wasn’t really a swimmer, I was very scared of the water. We went swimming but we were not actually allowed to go swimming, because we first had to ask, may we go there and may we go here. But… my pa never allowed me… I never had a friend, I still don’t have a pal. Still don’t.
Did they talk about people who live there in the river?
Yes. We were very scared… we were very scared… I was very scared.
They spoke about the water maiden who sat on the bank of the river when you got there. Then, then… then they dived in. I was so scared, I told Ma I wouldn’t go with those children, I wouldn’t go swimming because the water maidens were waiting. Then she said, “Okay, Antjie,” – my name is Anna but she called me Antjie – “then stay here. Then don’t go, Ma’s child, what if they get you.” (inaudible 00:30).
I was a house child. I was a house child. Oh, I loved my pa a lot. Ohhhh. I didn’t love Ma as much but that old Poen… Because he spoilt me. I didn’t go to school much because I was spoilt. I didn’t go to school much. Because I would, I would be on my way, then I would see him leading water, then I walked up to the gate. Because we had a baas* on the farm, my son worked there, then he stood there, Daddy. “You can go home.” Pa: “You can go home.”
That is why I didn’t go to school a lot, because Pa… I just looked where Pa was leading water in the early morning. Just stood there at the weir that I could go home.
Then I got into the (inaudible 01:28) before Ma came.
Do you know Jantjie’s Ram?
They said Jantjie’s Ram… didn’t he play on the roofs? Huh-uh. Dropped seed down this side, that side, but it burned. We were very scared, very.
Anna Mentoor is op Citrusdal gebore en getoë en het haar man ontmoet toe sy op die plaas Noordhoek gewoon het. Sy het vier dogters vir wie sy die waarde van harde werk geleer het, asook hoe om vir hulleself te sorg.
Anna vertel hoe sy haar kinders onder die vrugtebome neergelê het terwyl sy werk, en hulle so tussen die werkery deur geborsvoed het. Haar kinderjare was nie altyd maklik nie, maar sy het goeie herinneringe daaraan. Sy vertel hoe bang sy as kind vir die waterbaas was.
Anna Mentoor is op Citrusdal gebore en getoë en was 72 jaar oud ten tyde van die onderhoud. As kind het sy saam met haar familie Paarl toe getrek. Daarna is hulle Noordhoek toe, waar sy haar man ontmoet het. Hulle het vier dogters. Sy het in die boord gewerk en haar kinders saamgeneem werk toe. Sy het hulle in die boord neergelê en hulle so tussen die werkery deur geborsvoed. Haar kinders is geleer om hulleself en die huis te versorg. Hulle het op Noordhoek skoolgegaan.
Die mense van die ouer geslagte het swaar maar lekker grootgeword. Anna het vir haarself en haar kinders klere gemaak en haar kinders geleer hoe belangrik dit is om hard te werk.
As kind was Anna bang vir die waterbaas. Sy het vir haar ma gesê sy wou nie saam met die ander kinders rivier toe gaan nie, want die waterbaas lê op die loer vir haar. Anna se ma het gesê dis reg, sy kan by die huis bly. Sy was ’n huiskind. Anna was baie lief vir haar pa, en hy het haar gruwelik bederf deur vir haar te sê sy hoef nie skool toe te gaan nie.
Antie se naam, van …
Hoe oud is Antie? Twee-en-sewentig?
Twee-en-sewentig. Sê ek nou vandag.
Sê waar Antie gebore is en daarvan af begin vertel Antie my.
Gebore in Citrusdal. Daar’s ek gebore.
Daar’s ek gebore.
En grootgeword. Die grootwordjare …
Grootgeword. Saam met my Ma Paarl toe getrek en toe het ek daar verder grootgeraak. En toe, uit Paarl, uit die Paarl uit, Noordhoek toe. Toe’t ek my mannetjie gekry, Broer. Toe’t ek my kinders, vier meisiekinders, en ek het gewerk, in die boord, oor my kindertjies. Hulle het in die boord grootgeraak. Ek het ’n kissietjie, dan sit ek my kinders daar neer, en so het hulle … borsvoeding, en so gaan ek aan. En ek het baie … in … Saai van der Merwe se ma, nou Grieta van der Merwe se ma het ek gewerk. Ek het gewerk oor namiddae in die boord oor my kindertjies daar was.
En ek het hulle goed geleer, my kinders. Ek het hulle baie, baie goed geleer hoe hulle moet werk en hoe hulle my huis moet besorg as ek nou in die werk staan, en hulle het dit gedoen. Maar as ek nou Saterdag uit die werk uit kom, is ek so moeg, dan kan ek net my kop, my kossie aangaan, en hulle was skoon, en hulle was netjies en hulle was in hierdie, op Noordhoek was ’n skool, daar het my kinders-hulle geleer.
Vertel vir ons hoe was dit in die ou tyd gewees.
Hoo, in die ou tyd … Vandag wil ek vir die mense sê, die ou tyd se mense het baie swaar grootgeword, maar lekker. Met die een pond tien, die een pond tien wat my pa by die maand gepay het, het ons vir ons … klere kan koop – ek het, vir my kinders het ek materiaal gekoop van daai pond, het ek vir my kinders klere gemaak en ek het met die hand, saans, en ek het vir my klere gemaak. Daar was nie fout nie. Ek het baie, baie lekker … en my ma het my goed geleer. Werk. Ek is, my kinders is ’n werkesel met my hand. Ek werk.
Het Antie-hulle altyd gaan swem?
Ja, Meneer. Maar swem … ek was nie eintlik ’n swemmer nie, maar ek was baie bang vir die water. Dan gaan swem ons, maar ons mag nie eintlik gaan swem nie, want ons moes eers vra, kan ons daar gaan, en kan ons hier gaan. Maar … my pa het nooit dat ek … ek het nooit ’n maatjie gehad nie, ek het nou nog nie ’n pêllie nie. Nou nog nie.
Het hulle vertel van mense wat daar in die rivier is?
Ja. Ons was baie bang … ons was baie bang vir my … ek was baie bang vir my.
Hulle’t gesê van die waternôientjie sit op die rivierwal as jy aankom, dan, dan … dan duik hulle in. Toe’s ek so bang, toe sê ek vir Ma, ek gaan nie saam met daai kinders nie, ek gaan nie gaan swem nie, want die waternôientjies is op die loer. Toe sê sy, nee, maar Antjie – my naam is Anna, maar sê sy Antjie – dan bly jy hier. Dan gaan jy, Ma se kind, nie, netnou vat hulle vir jou. (onhoorbaar 00:30).
Ek was ’n huiskind. Ek was ’n huiskind. O, ek was baie lief vir my pa. O-e-e-e-e. Ek was nie baie lief vir Ma nie, maar daai ou Poen, want hy bederf vir my, daarom het ek mos baie min skoolgegaan van bederwe. Ek het baie min skoolgegaan. Want maak ek, loop ek, dan sien ek, dáár lei hy water, dan loop ek net tot daar by die hek. Want ons het ’n baas op die plaas, my seun het daar gewerk, dan staan hy so, hier’s Pappa: “Gaan maar huis toe.” Pa: “Gaan maar huis toe.”
Daarom was ek so min in die skool gewees, want daai pa, ek kyk net so waar Pa water lei in die vroeë môre. Staan net daar by hom uitkeerplek dat ek kan huis toe gaan.
Dan klim ek in die (onhoorbaar 01:28) voor Ma kom.
Ken Antie vir Jantjie se Ram?
Hulle het dan gesê Jantjie se Ram … het hy dan nie op die dakke gespeel nie? Huh-uh. Laat val saad diékant af, daai kant af, maar dis darem brand. Ons was baie bang, méns.