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p. 82
W1

CELESTINE WARE_WBAI
3-5-1971

6

MINNIE EVANS

M.E. They figured I acted very peculiar. My husband thought I was going crazy and he begged me to stop.

C.W. What did they mean peculiar?

M.E. (laughter) He didn't want me to paint. He thought I was losing my mind. But those things got on me. No one knows. I had to paint.

C.W. Well why did he think you were losing your mind? What did you do? What was different about you?

M.E. I don't know just making those funny pictures.

C.W. Did you talk in a different way? Did you spend all of your time painting? Why did you think you were going crazy?

M.E. No, it just got a habit and if I didn't paint seemed like I would die. (C.W. Really?) That's right. And so I just had to go ahead and paint. I tried to stop because my mother and husband wanted me to and I liked to died. So I just begged them to leave me off. Don't bother me and let me paint.

[[right margin]] "liked to died" does not mean she wanted to die. It means she almost died, or might have died. [[/right margin]]

C.W. You mean you said you like to died. You mean you get very sad? You get very depressed when you stopped? When you tried to stop?

M.E. Yes they wanted me to stop.

C.W. And did that make you feel bad?

M.E. Yes, it made me feel bad. It made me sick. Some days I have laid up there in home and not wanting to paint and get sick unto death. Sick. I just had to get up and get my paints and start to painting. Louie wanted me to go to church some Sundays. I wouldn't go. I said no. I can't go today. I got something to do. I wouldn't have nothing to do that kept me from my church but God talked to me you know and I had some dreams. Dreams, I have dreamed that the whole element and as far as I could see was put together with paintings.

C.W. I see. Yes.