|
In early days puberty was handled a whole lot differently than now-a-days. Mrs. Ludson doesn't remember any puberty dance for girls. The tribe's rite celebrating the girls' coming into puberty involved five days of carefully followed steps. The menstruant, called a t'KeIIta, was secluded from the tribe except for an old guardian woman who cared for the girl; taught her in the ways of tribal women, prayed for her and fed her. There was ritual bathing and restrictions on food. She could eat only dry food and no berries except red huckleberries. The girl might make baskets during her time of confinement. |
At the end of the five days the guardian woman put tattoo lines of rows of dots on the back of the girl's hands "to see if [she] was going to be tough." The girl's hair was cut in bangs across the forehead, and dentalia ...the girl's hair was cut in bangs across the forehead, and the dentalia was threaded in it. |
was threaded in it. Also, her face was painted red all over and she wore earrings. The guardian woman then introduced the young woman to the tribe. Mrs. Ludson, was quite young when the tribe faded out and was probably more familiar with the roles of girls than of boys. She doesn't remember any boy's puberty rites except that some especially if they were sickly or good for much" were sent on a spirit quest at about 14 or 15.
|
|