Grandma's old tricks

In Nigeria, it's customary for either of the couple's mothers to come live with them for atleast a month after a birth, especially for the first-time parents. No doubt, the presence of a child's grandmother in this period is very important.

She assists her daughter or daughter in-law to adapt easily to the noble roles of motherhood, providing the basic care and support needed by both mother and child. After a child has been born, it is always the duty of the Grandma to bath the child ( both morning and evening)

I was about completing elementary school the time my youngest brother was born. Every morning, I watch in admiration how grandma handles lil bro when giving him his bath. Using a soft cloth to massage his head and limbs repeatedly, she also never fails to apply a red oil over his body when she's done.

Perhaps the most fascinating moment during the bath is when Grandma tosses the newborn slightly above her head and catches him in mid air . She does this three to five times with a smile on her face while humming a native song.

I found this stunt very amusing and one day I asked grandma wether I could try it too but she screamed at me to go bring her a towel from the bedroom. I had also asked her if I could assist in the bathing of my baby brother, but she also disagreed. She said I might end up getting soap lather into his eyes or pouring water into his ears. So, my duty was only bringing towels, lotions and baby clothes after the baby's bath. I think I was about ten years old at the time. Grandma also brought some herbs. Mom would apply the herbs to her bathing water. I guess it helps to prevent postpartum belly fat and relieve body pains.

Two years ago, my neighbor had her first child and as our culture demands, her mother came to look after her and her baby. Since I sometimes spend the most parts of my day at their house,I became very friendly with the elderly woman. I had observed the way she baths the baby was exactly thesame way my grandmom does to my brother.

So, out of curiosity, i just had to ask her some questions which I never thought of asking my grandma since I was a kid at that time.

African grandmothers believed tossing a newborn to the sky would make him very brave in the future. Growing up, Such a child would never feel intimidated by bullies and would always get up each time he falls, rather than remaining on the floor and crying like other kids would do. I found this belief very fascinating to say the least.

If a child's head is not properly moulded after birth, he might come to have a large head in the future. The old woman revealed. Well, I only partially agreed to this one. Because, according to embryology, the skull and bones of a newborn are still soft due to the high level of cartilage. So, one could easily but gently alter it to a desired angle. But ofcourse there's surely a thin limit to which you could massage the head. You would definitely agree with me that the head can only be altered by just an inch or two, so applying too much force is simply sheer ignorance which would harm the child.

There was a kid in the neighborhood who had a abnormally large head which was due to a congenital malformation called megalocephaly. But the old woman maintained that the terrible condition could have been prevented if his head had been properly massaged in his early days .... How ridiculous!

She also revealed that her daughter ( my neighbor) had quite a plane nose at the time of her birth and this could have made her very ugly in adulthood. But she had constantly and gently molded the nose in the first few weeks and became quite pointed. This was what enhanced her beauty. The old woman said, with alot of pride. At this point, I and neighbor exchange glances and tried as much as we could to restrain the laughter that was already choking at our throats.

Not massaging the limbs of a newborn properly could make him develop bowlegs in childhood, old woman said with alot of confidence. At this momentt, she brought the two arms of the infants behind his back as she continued to massage. This posture made the child looked like a " baby in handcuffs" . Surprisingly the child still remained very calm. Infact, he seemed as if he was enjoying the massage.

Listening to such beliefs and tales told by the old could be amusing. You dare not laugh or try to argue against such achaic but revered beliefs. If you do, you'd be tagged disrespectful and ill-trained. Trust me, you don't want to an old African folk to get angry at you....

Just keep your education to yourself 😁😁😁

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Thanks for reading 💖💖💖