ciadoncha; ¡cuántos recuerdos - Webpages at SCU - Santa Clara ...

Others who had their children later commented that once the doctor or
obstetrician was their, it made them see that they were a hindrance and although no one
prohibited them from being present, they understood that they should leave to allow them
do their better work. “They preferred that the men wait outside,” one participant
commented. The younger couples did not have their children in the town. In the city,
very few husbands chose to be present during the labor.
The labor is such a natural thing, but at the same time unpredictably risky, which
makes it difficult to think how one could give birth when they did not have all of the
comforts that we enjoy today. The winter cold, the lack of immediate medical attention,
the lack of control during a pregnancy- all of this made it much more risky.
Nevertheless, what was never lacking was a kind hand to help in during moments and
thus, for the majority having their children is one of the most pleasing memories that they
have of their life in Ciadoncha.
Before, the mother would no leave the house for forty days, but on the eight day,
or when the first mass was celebrated in the town, the child was baptized. The
godmother would take the child and it was customary to throw confetti after the
ceremony.
When the women began giving birth in the city of Burgos, they came across the
custom of baptizing the children immediately after being born. One participant
commented that she remembers how another woman who had just given birth served as a
godmother in that same moment, but after finalizing the papers they put her sister and
brother-in-law as the godparents because they were the people that they had chosen for
such.
Children and adults picking up caramels in a baptism in Ciadoncha
Photo provided by Federico Varona
More recently, baptisms are a motive for a large celebration. The godparents are
named, who are normally relatives of the parents. The ceremony takes place in the
church during one of the masses and caramels are thrown when the attendants are on their
way home or to a wine cellar where a special meal is served.
98