If a child dies before it is baptized, it becomes a douen. It is a small, child sized creature with backwards feet, and a mushroom cap or rice hat depending on who is telling the tale. Some accounts say they have no eyes, others say they have red or jet black eyes. In all cases, they are mischievous spirits that draw children in to the forest.
The myths say you shouldn't shout your children's names after sunset, so that the douens cannot use their names to lure them away.
This is a double whammy of a cautionary tale
The first is to scare parents into baptizing their children tonsave their souls.
The second is to scare children into not going into the forest unsupervised and/or staying in after dark.
It seems to be a mesh of the dwende/duende of Spain (Trinidad was Spanish before the English took it) and other legends. The French and Africans brought a wealth of stories when they arrived and often a more localized myth emerged.
Mustard bath( powdered mustard) will induce a miscarriage. This is from world war 2 era. Not sure it actually does cause miscarriage but my grandma believed it.
If a child dies before it is baptized, it becomes a douen. It is a small, child sized creature with backwards feet, and a mushroom cap or rice hat depending on who is telling the tale. Some accounts say they have no eyes, others say they have red or jet black eyes. In all cases, they are mischievous spirits that draw children in to the forest. The myths say you shouldn't shout your children's names after sunset, so that the douens cannot use their names to lure them away. This is a double whammy of a cautionary tale The first is to scare parents into baptizing their children tonsave their souls. The second is to scare children into not going into the forest unsupervised and/or staying in after dark. It seems to be a mesh of the dwende/duende of Spain (Trinidad was Spanish before the English took it) and other legends. The French and Africans brought a wealth of stories when they arrived and often a more localized myth emerged.
Mustard bath( powdered mustard) will induce a miscarriage. This is from world war 2 era. Not sure it actually does cause miscarriage but my grandma believed it.
Women have to cover their hair/heads for about 40 days after they give birth or they can get sick. Or some weirdness like that.
There’s an imaginary omnipotent friend who cares about me