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VIDEO. Abandoned by their mother, these two young brothers lived alone in the forest in France for 7 years
At the time, Michel was 4 years old, his brother Patrice was 6 years old. Abandoned by their mother, the two brothers lived alone in the forest for 7 years. Their story is today told in the film “Frères” directed by Olivier Casas. On the occasion of the film’s cinema release, Brut met one of the two brothers.
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At the time, Michel was 4 years old, his brother Patrice was 6 years old. Abandoned by their mother, the two brothers lived alone in the forest for 7 years. Their story is today told in the film “Frères” directed by Olivier Casas. On the occasion of the film’s cinema release, Brut met one of the two brothers.
“We were the happiest children because we had total freedom. Of course, we suffered from the cold, etc., but imagine a child who can climb trees, who can fish whatever he wants, who can catch rabbits, who can run through the wheat. We had immeasurable happiness” remembers Michel of Robert. In 1949, Michel and his brother Patrice were in a children’s home in the west of France. At the end of the summer, their mother doesn’t come to pick them up. A few weeks later, the owner of the house hangs himself in the garage. The children discover the body, try to pick it up, but the body falls. They then decide to flee into the forest. They lived there for 7 years. Michel today remembers being “very quickly adapted to the environment”.
“No one was looking for us. We didn’t exist for anyone”
The first evening, they found shelter under a bramble bush. “It forms a kind of dome, it’s very thick, there’s a lot of thickness, so the rain doesn’t get through well. Right away, I decided to build a cabin. And then, very, very quickly, we started to glean, to look for everything we could salvage. (…) People ask me questions about previews. They ask me: “But how come no one was looking for you. But I have to answer: “Because no one was looking for us.” Nobody was looking for us. We didn’t exist for anyone”.
When asked if he felt fear, Michel replied: “Fear is something that we will overcome very little. That is to say, you will be afraid for three days. But it’s over. The problem is that even today, when you ask me this question, you are mentalizing fear. However, in reality, we, children, did not have the opportunity to feel afraid. Fear is also a comparison with the environment in which you live. Suddenly something happens, you get scared. When you are in an environment like us, we were, what would we have been afraid of?”
“He said to me: “Michel, we started at the end, we were so happy”
After 7 years, the two brothers are recognized by their grandmother on a beach. Their mother ends up coming to pick them up. “My mother, I was 18 years old, I look at her and I say to her: “But why did you do that to Patrice and me? Why did you do that to us?” And she answers me: “But Michel, I never wanted you. When I was with a man, I got pregnant half the time. I had an abortion three or four times, but from time to time someone had to be born. But I never wanted you. “Okay, well, you have to go with that in life” explains Michel.
Of this childhood, Michel remembers “of love. And nothing else” shared with his brother Patrice. “The fusion that we could have between us and which is still present today, even if he is no longer there. When he wants to leave, he is 49 years old. He said to me: “Michel, we started at the end, we were so happy”” confides Michel. The story of Michel and Patrice is today told in the film “Frères”, directed by Olivier Casas.