mama’s feu follet bedtime story

MAMA’S FEU FOLLET BEDTIME STORY

by

KAITLYN DAIGLE

Dedication I dedicate this book to all the prospective

students who will read this story,

to educate all children and inspire them to be

proud of their culture,

to understand their background,

and to form deeper connections to Louisiana

culture and folklore.

Mama’s Feu Follet Bedtime Story

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Author’s Purpose This children’s tale introduces local folklore to

elementary-age children to help them learn

more about their culture and the history of

Louisiana. Too often, important cultural details

are simply left out of a student’s education, and

these details are crucial to learn with hope that

young children may one day pass on their

knowledge to their peers. It’s important for these

students to be proud of where they come from

and understand the importance of the culture,

without negative influence from news outlets or

television shows.

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“Bedtime!” my mother calls from the kitchen.

We had been not-so-good at school today, so our

bedtime is early tonight.

“Awww,” we groan, “but we wanted to play.”

“You should have thought about that before. You

didn’t listen to your teachers today. Go brush

your teeth, children.”

My little brother Sam and I quickly dropped our

toys and ran to the bathroom and brushed our

teeth. We got our toothbrushes ready, and we

started singing the ABCs forward and backward

as fast as we could with a mouth full of bubble

gum toothpaste.

Once we rinsed our mouths and washed our

faces, we were ready for bed. Sam and I ran and


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jumped into our beds and slid under the covers

just as Mama is picking out a story to read to us.

“Mama, can’t you tell us one of your own stories?”

I ask. Mama’s stories are always much better than

those silly books. Sam and I are always the main

characters of Mama’s stories.

Mama laughs, turns out the light and turns on the

little lamp by my bed, then walks over to the

rocker in the center of our room. “I suppose so.

But you have to promise to go to sleep after!”

We promise her we will, and she starts telling her

story.

Mama begins with, “Once upon a time, there was

an eight-year-old girl named Sophie and her

five-year-old brother named Sam, and they were

the most adventurous children in their town.

But sometimes, those adventurous children

would get a little too curious and get into trouble.


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One day, while the children were at school,

Mama went far into the woods and met a magical

swamp witch. She asked the witch how to get her

children to behave and not be so curious, and the

witch had just the thing for Mama.

“Try this!” the swamp witch said. She handed

Mama a small wooden statue, shaped like a circle

above an oval, no bigger than the size of her

hand. On the front, two googly eyes were glued

on and were staring at Mama.

Confused, Mama asked, “What is this?”

The swamp witch replied, they are Feu Follets.”

“Feu-what?” Mama asked.

“Feu-Follets are little Cajun fairies that watch

children all day and punish them as they sleep for

their bad behavior,” the swamp witch explained.

“They see everything that your children will do,

and if they didn’t get in any trouble, then the


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fairies will let the children sleep soundly. But if

the children got into trouble, the little floating

lights drift under their covers and pull their toes

or tickle their noses. After two days of getting

into trouble, the Feu-Follets will start hiding the

children’s favorite toys.”

Mama liked these fairies and the powers that

they had, so she thanked the swamp witch and

brought home the Feu-Follets to show the

children.

When Sam and Sophie got home that afternoon,

both children stared at the little figure. Once

Mama explained their magical powers, both

children were eager to be the best children they

could be. They helped Mama cook dinner and

washed all the dishes, and they even brushed

their teeth and jumped into bed before Mama

told them to. That night, the Feu-Follets were

pleased, and the children slept soundly.


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The next day, Sam got into a bit of trouble. He

talked out of turn in class, and he didn’t finish his

dinner that Mama made for him. Sophie was a

good girl, and that night, she slept soundly. But

Sam felt his toes being pulled in the middle of the

night. When he opened his eyes, he saw the ball

of fire at the foot of the bed, and two beaming

eyes looking right at him. He screamed for Mama

and woke up Sophie, but by the time Mama got

there, the little fairy was gone.

Sam knew now that the Feu-Follet was serious. If

he was bad, the Feu-Follets knew it.

The next day, and for every day after that, Sam

was on his best behavior. He didn’t want the Feu-

Follets to take his toys, so he always worked hard

to behave. Sam was an excellent student at

school, he was always very kind to his friends,

and he even helped Mama with chores every

night.


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The Feu-Follets never had to mess with the

children much because the extra pair of eyes on

them made the children well-behaved. Mama

was happy, the children were happy, and they all

lived happily ever after. The end.”

Mama walked over to us, kissed each of us on the

forehead, and turned out the light.


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About the Author Kaitlyn Rose Daigle is a 21-

year-old student at the

University of Louisiana at

Lafayette, majoring in

elementary education with a

minor in psychology. In her spare time, Kaitlyn waits

tables at a local family-owned restaurant in town, and

she also teaches dancing to children and adults of all

ages. After graduation, Kaitlyn plans on staying in

Lafayette and teaching 2nd or 3rd grade at a local

elementary school, while also continuing to teach dance

when and where she can. Kaitlyn plans on working on

more creative writing pieces in the future and hopes to

also inspire her students to open their minds and

surprise themselves with what they can create.


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mama’s feu follet bedtime story

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