4/6/2007 Reu
Retalhuleu, Guatemala is 36 km east of the Pacific Ocean and 50km south of the Mexican Border. It is the third largest city in Guatemala with a population of about 250,000.

I was able to stay with cousins of friends there. My mission was to videotape a completely natural birth untouched by Western practices.

I thought the main obstacle would be to find a pregnant woman willing to be videotaped. That was the biggest obstacle but not for the reason I thought.

There were many pregnant women who probably would have been glad for the extra income but they were afraid of having their babies stolen. Unbeknownst to me, there is a black market for babies in Guatemala and instances of women having their babies literally grabbed from their arms were widely reported. Women were terrified and I found them fiercely holding onto their babies in the market.

Videotaping could not be prearranged. The families had to meet me first, look me in the eye and determine if I would be the type to steal their baby or not. Fortunately, that did happen. I was able to meet two families and videotape two births in the two weeks I was there.

Maribelle, the first mother, was having her ninth child. This mother was soft spoken and kept a clean, well ordered house and family. They lived in the country on the edge of a sugar cane plantation. The culvert which held water for the plantation was the family bath. With mangos and bananas growing in the yard, this family lived large on very llittle. No one wore shoes, except the father when he rode his bicycle to work - 45 minutes each way. There was no electricity,no running water. The small shed near the house had a well for drawing water and an elevated fire pit for a stove.

The children, unlike the parents, were learning to read and write at a small school within walking distance of their house.

It was a hot March afternoon the day of the birth. Maribelle took a bath in the culvert. When she rose to cross the yard, she was followed by six of the eight children. She washed her clothes, the children, her hair. The water was cool and must have been refreshing for her. The kids were playing and splashing in the water. There was one bar of soap which made bubbles, got lost in the water, dripped in someone's eyes.

When Maribelle rose out of the water, the children all followed in a playful way. She did not have to call them or even say a word. She is like a powerful magnet.

All of this time, Maribelle was having 'dolores' contractions. It was not at all evident. In fact, it was never evident that she was even in labor until about 4 minutes before the baby arrived. Even then, the tiny bead of sweat on her brow could have been mistaken for heat perspiration.

Mingo, her husband, was in the yard. He put the smaller children in the back of my borrowed truck. The older ones were asked to stay in the kitchen. In Guatemala, i was told, birth is private and the parents don't invite the children to attend.

The midwife had arrived. Maribelle then called her husband to come inside. He came quickly, squatted down in front of Maribelle and she knelt in front of him. Mingo supported her back in his embrace. With her arms around his waist, Maribelle pressed her cheek against Mingo's chest and pushed. The midwife was behind Maribelle crouched and waiting for the baby. After two pushes, Maribelle stood up and Mingo explained that sometimes it was like this and he went outside.

Less than one minute later, Maribelle called Mingo back in and they resumed the same positions. This time a healthy baby came flying out into the midwife's hands. She quickly put a heavy cloth over the baby and attended to delivering the placenta. She then wrapped Maribelle in a huge 'diaper' made out of 3 or yards of cloth, wrapped Maribelle's long hair in another piece of fabric and then helped Maribelle to the bed.

The midwife then turned her attention to the baby. She removed the heavy cloth, cut the umbilical cord and took him over to a pan of warm water where she scrubbed his little body vigorously. He never cried or made any sounds of distress. His eyes were wide open taking everything in. She scrubbed and inspected his entire body and lathered his head with a bar of soap. She held him on one arm and cupped water in the other to rinse him off. Then she held him upside down by the feet and rinsed his head in the pan of water dipping him two or three times.

She worked fast and confidently as Mingo and Maribelle watched quietly. When she was finished Mingo offered the baby to me. I took the baby and put him next to the mother on the bed.

The midwife was from the neighborhood, wore no shoes and knew precisely what she was doing. This baby was welcomed with a vigorous and soapy massage. He was in the mothers arms in less than 15 minutes of arrival.

I left before the midwife, in the quiet glow of a profoundly beautiful birth. On the drive home, a uniquely beautiful sunset followed me in the rear view mirrow. I stopped the truck in a field and turned around to admire the brilliant red sky. Just like birth, no two sunsets are ever the same.

Diana

Ed and I were driving to town on our bumpy, pot holed street. Just past the stop sign at Las Lomas I said, "Oh, look at the naked ladies." Ed whipped his 91 year old head around and asked, "Where?"

"Right back there," I said backing up the car. He probably wasn't imagining the gorgeous perfumed blossoms that I was seeing. He may have been teasing me as was his practice. Whatever his inner thoughts, there lay a small hillside full of delicate, pink, naked ladies; clusters of trumpet like flowers atop spindly leafless legs reaching down the slope to say...hello.

That was three summers ago. The following summer a large bulldozer scraped along the mound removing grasses and squashing the bulbs. I winced every time I walked by. Bottles and trash began to accumulate. Several times I thought about going there under cover of night and rescuing the "lady bulbs" from the big bad, dozer. But I didn't. I wondered if any would survive the construction.

But by Auust there they were, thriving again tossing their proud pink trumpets at an unapologetic bulldozer.

These flowers never cease to get my attention. They never ask for it. They don't require anything in the way of care or feeding. None is given. They are wild.

We've decided to have birth stories. Only narration, no images. Something a little different with the possibility of wider classroom use.

The stories are highly engaging and informative. We will get to the mainstream yet.

Best, Diana

Our latest DVD offering on www.HomeBirthVideos.com is "Birth As We Know It." It includes 11 natural births, children playing with dolphins, and pregnant, bikini clad Russians ice swimming. At 3 hours plus it is a tour de force of birth.

Possibly the most remarkable footage is of Amber Hartness on her first Labor Day. This is rare, gorgeous and inspiring. Instead of showing us agony and pain during labor, Amber experiences waves of bliss. Her interview after the birth is one not to be missed.

Labor Day....Bliss, Labor Day....Bliss, Labor Day.... Diana

Then a random survey of donors, friends and supporters confirmed the Board's suggestion and research has begun.

We will be working with The Living Tree, a midwifery school in New Mexico. Birth 101 will be part of their curriculum so they will have huge input for its content.

If you have suggestions for this or future videos, please use the message board to let us know. We always like to hear from our customers, to find out what is needed and learn how we can help.

Diana

The Mountain Play Association (also a nonprofit) always selects musicals and hires equity actors for the leads. There are usually only 6 performances on Sunday afternoons in May and June which are always sold out.

Over and behind the stage, the audience can see trees, sky and the San Francisco Bay. Everything about performing on Mt. Tamalpais is spectacular.

This year the play is FIDDLER ON THE ROOF. There are live chickens, a huge cow and a horse which comes off and on stage. They used 2 1/2 ton truks on stage and WWII fighter planes over the stage when they did SOUTH PACIFIC.

Why am I writing about this? Because my husband and son are performing in the play this year. Brian (son) began when he was 5. He and his dad can both sing, dance and act. Rehearsals are a 45 minute drive up and down a gorgeous, scenic mountain road. Not only was this fabulous childcare in the early years but they are still doing this together twenty years later.

The Home Birth Videos site is trying out Google ads in a program called adsense. We ask for your patience while we Fiddle around with this. It is a small source of revenue for HBV. But if we can not work out the kinks (like who is allowed to advertise on this site) they they will be but a fleeting act. Stay tuned and please stay with us.

Diana

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