Yesterday I was able to be in on a delivery of a healthy 8 lb baby boy. The mother was G2P1 (2 pregnancies, 1 delivery) so she delivered quite fast. The Yupik women here are taught not to make any noise during labor. And most, if any, do not use any epidurals. As I type this I can think of several brave women: Michelle, Elizabeth, Tereza, who also did this spectacular thing naturally. Not sure if you guys were silent though :)
This long held tradition is rooted somewhere in the superstition that if you make a lot of noise during labor, the child will give you a lot of trouble growing up. Even though the native way of life (subsistence living, gathering, making your own clothes) is slowly being infiltrated and substituted with the Western lifestyle, some of the long held behavior norms remain.
It really is a beautiful thing to see. I am still amazed how cool the human body is, God is so creative! I say this as an outsider, never having any pregnancies of my own, but what an amazing thing! Who knows, maybe in the next year or too I will have to find out for myself. For all you current and soon to be mothers out there, I applaud you!
Next week I will be in the pediatric clinic. I will also be spending 1 day in the dental and ophthamology clinics as well. They actually shortened my training down from 8 weeks to 4, I attribute much of this to my time with Dayone. I learned a lot about medicine while being there. Even though Bethel has been great, I am ready to be in Aniak with Ian, so this came as very exciting news!
As a matter of fact, I will be flying to Aniak tonight to visit him. Unfortunately it will be a very quick trip, but I am really excited! It has been 3 weeks since I have last seen him. The distance has been the most difficult thing about the move, I enjoy being with him so much.The other added bonus for tonight is the pizza place in town (the only restaurant for at least a 100 mile radius). I have been drooling, I mean dreaming about that for a while ( I am a very big pizza fan). Now on my 3rd week of rice and beans, I am ready for some real food!
Hopefully we will be able to get some pictures of the village to post. It is beautiful there, lots of mountains and trees. I am asking for prayers for safe travel, there is a storm front coming in from Anchorage today. The pilots here are excellent, some of the best in the world, so I am not concerned, but prayer is always good.
Also, I want to wish a VERY happy 84th Birthday to my aunt Faye. HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Love you! And a belated (January 27th) happy birthday to Amanda Feyes, love you too Panda Bear!
-Sarah
You guys are awesome!!! Thanks for much for the updates
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Thanks for the birthday wishes Sarah! Childbirth truly is amazing. I didn't realize how much one could love another human being until I became a mother. It made me appreciate my mother that much more. I know you have hummed and hawed about the idea of having children, so I'm glad to hear a glimmer of hope in your writings! Enjoy time as newlyweds with all your adventure, but don't miss out on being parents either. Love and miss you!
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