ETV Classics
Errands for Mama | Under the Yellow Balloon (1980)
Season 7 Episode 14 | 14m 7sVideo has Closed Captions
This episode focuses on two young boys who run errands for their respective families.
The episode "Errands for Mama" focuses on two young boys who run errands for their respective families. The young boys go fishing together and once they get back to their respective homes, one of the boys helps his other cook dinner. The next day, the two boys meet up again and head over to the silversmith and blacksmith to run errands for the other boy’s parents.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
ETV Classics is a local public television program presented by SCETV
Support for this program is provided by The ETV Endowment of South Carolina.
ETV Classics
Errands for Mama | Under the Yellow Balloon (1980)
Season 7 Episode 14 | 14m 7sVideo has Closed Captions
The episode "Errands for Mama" focuses on two young boys who run errands for their respective families. The young boys go fishing together and once they get back to their respective homes, one of the boys helps his other cook dinner. The next day, the two boys meet up again and head over to the silversmith and blacksmith to run errands for the other boy’s parents.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship♪ ♪ There's a world ♪ somewhere near ♪ ♪ A world we've ♪ come to know ♪ ♪ Your family and you ♪ can search for it too ♪ ♪ A place that ♪ will help us to grow ♪ ♪ There's a world ♪ somewhere near ♪ ♪ under beautiful skies ♪ ♪ You can find it and say ♪ on a bright, sunny day ♪ ♪ Under the Yellow Balloon ♪ ♪ Yes, ♪ Under the Yellow Balloon ♪ ♪ (ocean waves crashing) Jose> Hurry, it looks like the tide is coming in.
Francisco> It will ruin everything.
Jose> Better get this home before anything else happens.
♪ Jose> My name is Jose Garcia Juan Diegas.
This is my friend, Francisco Esteban Rivera.
We've been gathering oysters.
My mother is waiting for them, and she would've been so upset if we would have lost them.
♪ My father is a soldier here at the Castillo de San Marcos.
He helped protect our settlement from enemy attacks.
♪ Our town is called St. Augustine.
Almost 200 years ago.
Pedro Menendez de Aviles founded St. Augustine and it's been a Spanish town ever since then.
♪ I have to run some errands for Mama.
Maybe you can come with me.
Francisco> I'll ask mom after we eat.
Jose> Mama's drawing water from our well, she drops the bucket in upside down so it won't float.
If it floated, she wouldn't get any water.
Mama> Did you have any luck?
Jose> Yes, mama.
But the tide came in and we almost lost the basket.
Mama> Well, it's good that you didn't.
You know, we need that food.
Jose> I know.
♪ ♪ Stolen from the ocean's ♪ animal treasure.
♪ ♪ Oysters by the pound.
♪ ♪ And a crab ♪ for good measure.
♪ ♪ Jose> We have to find our food wherever we can.
There is a long time between the arrival of ships with supplies.
We eat seafood from the ocean as well as growing food in our garden.
Mama> Jose, go get me some more wood.
♪ Jose> We have to be very careful with our fire because it takes so long to make one.
If ours goes out, we have to borrow fire from someone else's fire.
I wish there was an easier way to get fire.
♪ ♪ Jose> Mama is a good cook.
She cooks out here most of the time.
She's making seafood with rice today.
That's my favorite.
♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Straight from the well ♪ ♪ in a wooden bucket.
♪ ♪ Open up an oyster, ♪ The meat to pluck it.
♪ ♪ Sister fixed the beans ♪ for our plates to fill.
♪ ♪ Mother builds ♪ a fire with wood and skill.
♪ ♪ ♪ Bubbling outside ♪ in the big black pot, ♪ ♪ Seafood with rice is very hot.
♪ ♪ ♪ Salt and pepper to add you ♪ should ♪ ♪ Stirring it a lot, ♪ ♪ makes it very good.
♪ ♪ Jose> Our house isn't very large.
We only have two rooms.
We cook and eat in here.
We sleep in the other room.
♪ Mama only uses our stove when it's raining or to bake bread because it makes so much smoke in the room.
♪ Food is put on the hanging shelf.
That way bugs can't get to it.
Food is too hard to get to waste.
♪ We don't have much furniture.
Some things are stored in chests.
Clothes are on pegs.
♪ Mama> Jose, Wanda and I are going to the (seamtress).
(The seamtress) is going to show us how to use her loom.
We'll be gone all afternoon.
Jose> Can I go to Francesca's house?
Mama> You have to repair your fish net this afternoon.
If you had it fixed this morning, you could have used it then.
Jose> Can I go after I fix it?
Mama> You can tell me when you're finished.
Then you can go with Francisco.
♪ Jose> This is our other room.
We use ut mostly for sleeping.
Those are our sleeping mats.
At night, we roll them out on the floor to sleep.
Then in the morning they're rolled up and put in the corner out of the way.
♪ I like to use my cast net to catch fish.
Maybe Francsico and I can use it tomorrow.
I'll remember to ask him if he wants to go fishing.
♪ Mama I finished repairing my net.
Can I go to Francisco's now?
Mama> Did you fix it good?
If you didn't, it'll break the first time you use it.
Jose> I fixed it good.
Mama> All right, you go on.
But don't stay out after dark.
I have other things you need to do at home.
Jose> All right.
♪ Jose> *Juar de is weaving cloth.
It takes a long time to make enough cloth for our clothes.
♪ Francisco's house is much bigger than ours.
His father is an important man in St. Augustine.
Their house has two floors, but they usually stay upstairs.
♪ Jose> Francisco Francisco> Come on up.
I have to ask mom what she needs us to do while we're out.
♪ Francisco> Jose's here.
And we're ready to go.
What do you want me to do?
Mom> Buenos Dios, Jose.
Francisco, wait till I finish this.
♪ Jose> Francisco's house has more furniture than ours.
♪ Francisco sleeps on a sleeping mat like I do, but his mama and papa have a real bed.
Their baby sister sleeps in the crib.
I wonder what it's like to sleep in a real bed.
Mom> Go downstairs and ask your father if you should stop at the blacksmith's to see when they can shoe his horse.
Then stop at the silversmith and pick up the spoons I ordered.
You and Jose can even stop and get yourself some sugar cane.
Have a nice time, but do all your errands.
Francisco> Yes, Mama.
Come on Jose.
♪ Jose> Senora Ribera uses this room as an office.
It's a nice place to meet with people.
We use candles for special occasions.
And our lamps, we burn fish oil rather than use candles.
Candles are hard to make and don't last long.
♪ Religion plays an important part in our lives.
Some houses, like Francesco's, even have a special place to worship.
That's a brazier, It's used for heating Hot coals from the kitchen, are put inside, then people can put their hands or feet on the brass to keep them warm.
We don't have a brazier, but father said maybe we could get one soon.
♪ The Riberas have a nice dining room.
They eat in here all the time.
♪ This is the year 1760, and St. Augustine is already over 200 years old.
I wonder what the town will look like 200 years from now.
♪ Many of the houses are made of tabby.
Tabby is a kind of concrete.
It's made of oyster shells, lime and sand.
♪ Coquina is another building material.
It's a type of stone.
Francisco's house is made of coquina, but the walls are plastered inside and out to keep out moisture.
♪ A lot of houses have balconies or porches upstairs.
People sit here in the summer to catch the cool breeze from the ocean.
In the winter, the north wind is cold, so all the houses have a solid wall facing the north.
Since there are no windows on this side the house stays warmer.
♪ St. Augustine is a growing town.
We have lots of new houses and shops, with a carpentry shop here.
♪ ♪ You make fine furniture, ♪ cabinet maker, ♪ ♪ chisel a table carpentry.
♪ ♪ ♪ Playing down the wood ♪ till it's even and smooth.
♪ ♪ Tables and chairs ♪ and a small baby boot.
♪ Francisco> It's getting late and we still have to go.
...to the silversmith and the blacksmith.
♪ Francisco> Good afternoon, Senor Gomez.
Senor Gomez> Buenos Dias, boys.
Francisco> We came up for the spoons that mama ordered.
Senor Gomez> Fine.
I'm just finishing up the last spoon right now.
Francisco> Good.
♪ With heat tuning, ♪ ♪ That pewter is made ♪ with the mold ♪ ♪ in the shape ♪ of a spoon is laid.
♪ ♪ Save the rest ♪ with a snip and a scratch.
♪ ♪ Then brush it right ♪ and add it to the batch.
♪ ♪ ♪ He's a fine craftsman ♪ ♪ who makes quite well, things ♪ we can't make for ourselves.
♪ ♪ This is the job ♪ of a silversmith.
♪ Senor Gomez> It'll be ready for you in just a second.
Francisco> Gracias.
Senor Gomez> De nada.
Buenos Dias, boys.
♪ ♪ ♪ Who works in that house slow ♪ and dark to a strong metal.
♪ ♪ And leaves his mark.
♪ ♪ A much bigger man.
♪ ♪ So full of strength ♪ he can straighten out ♪ ♪ a horesshoe ♪ at an arm's full length.
♪ ♪ ♪ Blacksmith ♪ and hammer, vice and drill ♪ ♪ Make me shapes if you will.
♪ ♪ Make it with steel.
♪ ♪ And make me ring ♪ ♪ horseshoe and hinges ♪ and all sorts of things.
♪ ♪ Francisco> Good afternoon.
>> Good afternoon, young man.
What can I do for you?
Francisco> When can you shoe my father's horse?
>> Can you bring it early in the morning?
♪ Francisco> I'll see you in the morning.
>> All right.
♪ Francisco> Can you come to the blacksmith shop with me in the morning?
Jose> All right.
But you have to fishing with me later Francisco> I'll see you in the morning.
♪ ♪ Our walls they have ♪ so much charm, ♪ ♪ The tabby to coquina.
♪ ♪ The north wind blows ♪ against them so.
♪ ♪ But they keep us very warm ♪ ♪ from the upstairs balcony.
♪ ♪ As you can see, ♪ the boat so strong.
♪ ♪ It protects us and our town ♪ from the pirate ship.
♪ ♪ from the seas.
♪ ♪ ♪ This is what we're proud of.
♪ ♪ This is what we know.
♪ ♪ We counted on each other ♪ ♪ and so can you ♪ ♪ Our homes are ♪ dark and very small, ♪ ♪ by the light ♪ of the fish oil lamps, ♪ ♪ we play and do our work.
♪ ♪ The purse goes in the chest ♪ or on pegs on the wall, ♪ ♪ ♪ mending our old ♪ broken nets, ♪ ♪ drawing water from our well, ♪ ♪ growing ♪ and harvesting our food, ♪ ♪ catching fish ♪ and getting our feet wet ♪ ♪ ♪ to live here ♪ ♪ all these things ♪ the family must do.
♪ ♪ ♪ We counted on each other ♪ ♪ and so can you.
♪ ♪ We needed our fine craftsman ♪ ♪ to do the things ♪ we couldn't do.
♪ ♪ making horseshoes, ♪ nails and pewter ♪ ♪ where they're skilled ♪ hands with us they share.
♪ ♪ We had to be so thrifty, ♪ but we knew no other way.
♪ ♪ St Augustine, our home ♪ ♪ a long time ago, in 1760 ♪ ♪ in Spanish St Augustine, ♪ ♪ a long, long time ago.
♪ ♪ Working together ♪ is a good life, we knew ♪ ♪ In Spanish ♪ St. Augustine ♪ ♪ a long, long time ago, ♪ ♪ working together ♪ is the good life we knew.
♪ ♪ ♪ (instrumental of closing song) ♪ ♪ ♪
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ETV Classics is a local public television program presented by SCETV
Support for this program is provided by The ETV Endowment of South Carolina.













