(told by Sarah Ratt)
When I had my first child, I was told what to do and how to handle myself. When it came time for me to give birth, our elderly woman and my aunt Daisy were there. Fortunately, I did well when I gave birth because I did what I was ordered to do. I obediently listened when I was told what to do and I didn’t have any worries. My child was born.
When my child was born, the placenta didn’t fall out right away. I think it didn’t fall out for two nights. I didn’t feel anything wrong at all. The women who were working on me placed hot stones on both sides of me to heat me up. I didn’t feel anything wrong. They knew the reason why the after birth didn’t fall right away. They said that it must be hanging stuck. I didn’t feel anything wrong when this was done to me.
Castoreum was boiled to make castoreum broth. I was told to drink it when I had my first child. I was given one cup to drink. After drinking it, I still felt that there was nothing wrong. I didn’t lose much blood when I gave birth. I guess the women who were looking after me wanted to help me. I was told that the broth helps a woman so she doesn’t lose too much blood even when she has many children. I was told that a woman will not die be-
cause she lost too much blood. I wanted to take care of what I was told. I really listened obediently when I was advised because I believed that the older women were the ones who first gave birth and were the first reared children. I did what I was ordered to do. Then the afterbirth fell out.
The women told me that a woman should take care of herself when she has her first child. I believe that it was a month that a woman wasn’t allowed to work with water because that was how much the people wanted to take care of her and wanted her to be strong for a long time. She should take care of herself and know what she should wear. I was told that a woman should absolutely wear a hat. I agreed because I didn’t talk back to what was being ordered for me to do.
I really wanted to take care of what I was ordered to do because I believed that the older women knew more that me even though there was no doctor around. There were no doctors when a woman was giving birth long ago because a woman always gave birth in the bush. Wherever the family was, that was where the child was born and the woman still did very well when she did what she was ordered to do.
I think we were living with my aunt Daisy for a week. It was already early summer, it wasMay 18. My aunt Daisy and her people left first by canoe down the river to here.I think we were at that place for ten days after I gave birth. Then we came downriver also. Nothing went wrong for us and we simply came down the river. We were doing well when we reached the settlement.
