Interviews with my characters – Sabsutu

I’m going to start a series of blog posts interviewing the characters in Rakkot Eyes. I am not going to start with the main characters. The first person to be interviewed is an old woman known throughout the story as Sabsutu. She is not a main character, although she is an important character.

Let’s get a few of the basic questions out of the way first. What do people call you?
I am called Sabsutu. I have been called this for many, many years.
What is your full name? My full name is Pushu bint Bethuel.
Does your name have a meaning? Of course. Don’t all names have a meaning? Pushu means mouse. The rest – bint Bethuel – means that I am the daughter of Bethuel.
Is there a story behind that meaning? When my older brother, Laban, first saw me, he said that I looked like a little mouse. My mother found that amusing and decided to give me that as a name. It is funny, because no one has ever accused me of having the personality of a mouse.
You said that your name is Pushu, but people call you Sabsutu? Why is this? Sabsutu is my title. I am a midwife. There are very few people who call me Pushu any longer.
How old are you? I count my years as ninety-five.
You are very old. I don’t consider myself old, although I am certainly getting older. I will admit that I no longer go to the women’s tent each month. My father saw nearly one hundred and sixty years, and I have met many priestesses who see far more than one hundred and fifty years. I still feel healthy and strong. I can stay up all night helping with a childbirth and still perform my chores the next day, although I may need a brief nap.
Did your mother live many years, then? No. My mother died in childbirth. It is a very common thing. Horribly, horribly, common. I continually study to find ways to help women survive the birth of their children.
What is your birthdate? I was born on the fifteenth day of the third month, nine years before the great king Utu-hengal defeated the Gutians.
That seems like an interesting way of describing your date of birth. Would you not rather say who was actually ruling? No. The Gutians were a terrible, barbaric people who almost destroyed our land. My father told me often about the attacks upon our home city. They were cowards who attacked simple shepherds and farmers but then run away before the troops arrived. The most wonderful thing that happened in my childhood was their defeat.
Have there been many kings in your lifetime? Utu-hengal who defeated the Gutians, Ur-Nammi who came to the throne the year my brother Iyyar was born, Shulgi who ruled for decades, Amar-Sin, Shu-Sin, and our current king Ippi-Sin.
Where were you born? I was born in what would become the city of Harran. It was only a village at the time, although the temples to Sin and his daughter Ishtar had already been built.
Who are your people? My people are Sumerian, child.
So this means that your people were ruled by a foreign group for a time? Yes. It was a terrible time. My parents were married shortly before the Gutians took control of our land.
For the record, can you tell us your basic appearance? Hair, skin, distinctive features? You wish for me to describe myself? It is an odd question. My hair is long and gray, and I wear it tied in a tail behind my head. My skin is … well, wrinkled. *Sabsutu laughs* I live my life in the desert, with the wind, sun and sand always beating against my skin. How would you expect me to look?
How tall are you and how much do you weigh? *Sabsutu stares for a moment and then shakes her head* That question makes no sense. How is a person supposed to know something like that? I am taller than your average sheep, although I weigh not so much.

Now, I’m going to ask you a bit about your family and your childhood.
Who are your parents? My parents were Bethuel and Adinah.
What did your parents do for a living? The usual things. My father was … a merchant, dealing in fine goods. He also owned many animals which he bred and sold. When I was young, my oldest brother took care of the animals for him.
Then you have brothers and sisters? Oh, yes. Bakalum is the eldest. He was thirty-five when I was born. He had, in fact, been married by then, and his wife was killed during one of the last battles with the Gutians before they had children. As I said, it was a terrible time. Next came my sister Rebekah, who was twenty at my birth. Then, my brother Laban, who was only ten. Our mother died shortly after my birth, and from the descriptions that I have been told, it was from loss of blood after childbirth. She was only fifty-three, far too young. My father quickly remarried. Five years after my birth came my younger sister Aburu, who later came to be called Beltu-Ishtar, then my sister Ana four years later. Six years after that came Agrabu, although he has been called to the land of the dead. Finally, my father’s wife birthed our youngest brother, Iyyar. He is a very young man – only seventy-four.
What other close family did you have? *Sabsutu laughs* Many, many nieces! Although I’m not sure I would call them close. Would you believe that Rebecca’s sons are my only nephews? All of my other siblings have girls. Should our family lose everything, we remain rich in daughters.
Who was your best friend in childhood? Sarai. *Sabsutu looks off into the distance with a thoughtful smile* It is too bad that we never go into the city. I have not spoken with her in many years.
Who were your other friends? The other girls in the temple.
Did you have any enemies? Oh, no, I don’t believe so. Not as a child, in any case. I had professional disputes later. But not as a child.
Did you have any pets? That is, animal companions? Sarai had the most beautiful dog. It had been brought all the way from the black lands, and it ran like the wind. We also had cats. I miss having cats around – they aren’t exactly fond of desert life, you know.
What was your home life like during your childhood? Well, I did not really grow up with my parents. Did you not realize that? I was to be a priestess, and so I was placed in Sin’s temple at a very young age, to be raised by the priests and priestesses there. That is how I knew Sarai, in fact. She and I were qadishtu.
Could you explain what that means? *Sabsutu grins and her eyes twinkle* It means that I was once a very, very beautiful girl. Oh, you are serious! You do not know what the qadishtu did? We were dedicated to the moon god, and we were trained to represent the goddess when men came to worship. Our training was in the use of sex for healing and worship. Of course, we also received training in other things, and I later discovered that my skills were best used in assisting women to birth healthy children.
What sort of schooling did you receive? Other than the arts of pleasure? We were taught to read and write, of course. We also learned accounting and economics, as well as law, biology, astronomy. We had to learn to speak and read Sumerian, the language of our people, although regular people no longer speak it. Most people speak Akkadian. History, of course. We spent a lot of time studying the traditional stories of our people. And we learned to write stories and poetry. I would say we had a good education.
What was your favourite study subject? You seemed offended when I spoke about learning the arts of love, so I will simply say that biology was my favourite.
Were you popular or a loner? I had friends. However, I was never as popular as my younger sister Aburu.
What are some important experiences or events from your childhood? The death of my mother, the births of my younger siblings, the first time that I took the role of goddess in worship, the birth of … well, anyway, there are many things that were important in my life.
Did you have any health problems? No, I’ve been very healthy. Look at me – I am ninety-five years old. Were I not healthy, I would not have survived so long.
What sort of culture did you grow up in? *Sabsutu chuckled* One that could not make up its mind. Listen – we are Sumerian, but we speak Akkadian. That is so funny, I think. No, more seriously, I would say that I grew up in a good time. People were celebrating the overthrow of the Gutians. The king had patrols on all the major roads so that travel became safe. We traded with other nations. It was a good time.
What was your religion and what were your beliefs? Religion? Should there be a name for it? I believe as all of my people do. The gods created humans in order to do their work. Life is harsh and short and that is the way the gods mean it to be. However, we humans have a long history of not doing as the gods want, and so healers and midwives like myself attempt to make that short lifespan longer?
Short? You are ninety-five, consider yourself no more than middle age, and you call that short? Do you not? Since the great flood, people have been changing. When I was born, a child of twenty was not considered ready for marriage. Now these babies are already having babies. We are dying younger, too. They say that the gods cursed us after the flood, and I am beginning to believe it is true.

Now, I’m going to ask you a little bit about your character. This may become a bit personal.
What are your bad habits? I have none. *Sabsutu laughs* The look on your face, child! I am blunt and I speak my mind. Some people consider that to be a bad thing.
What are your good habits? I keep myself very clean. Look at my teeth. *She smiles, showing a mouthful of white teeth* I use sticks from certain trees to clean my teeth several times in the day. That is one good thing about being in the desert – we can pick things like that ourselves. Were I still in town, I would have to buy things to clean my teeth.
What is your best characteristic? A strong self-confidence.
What is your worst characteristic? *Sabsutu looks thoughtful* I suppose the fact that, since I know so much more than many of those around me, I often don’t listen to their advice. However, most of my family have not been educated. Leah is an exception to that. Rachel has grown up in the desert and knows almost nothing.
What are you most proud of? I helped two mothers birth healthy children after royal doctors advised cutting them open. You look confused. Do you not know what doctors do when a child is stuck within the mother? They cut open the mother’s belly and bring out the child. It does not always save the child, but it does always kill the mother.
What are you most embarrassed by? That I did not return to Harran in time to save the mother of Leah and Rachel. I don’t wish to talk about that, child.
How would you describe your general temperament? Bossy, overbearing, and generally annoying. *Sabsutu laughs* And honest.
What are your weaknesses? I suppose the fact that I love my niece Leah as much as I do. In many ways, she takes the place of … of the children I never had. I have been sent so many prophetic dreams about that child.
What are your fears? I fear the changes I have seen in people over my lifetime. As I said, we are dying younger with each generation. I fear the drought upon our land which I can see coming. I fear the growing unrest in our land, as the Amorites continue to attack and raid – much like the Gutians did two hundred years ago.
Do you have any phobias – that is, strong and irrational fears? I don’t believe so.
Do you have any secrets? *Sabsutu is silent for a long time before speaking softly* I would rather not answer that question.
What regrets do you have? That is the same as the last question. Please, ask me something else, child. There are things which I am not comfortable speaking about.
May I ask how long you’ve had this secret regret? *Sabsutu sighs* Since around the birth of Rachel. Now, ask something else.
I am very sorry to have upset you, Sabsutu. What are your pet peeves – that is, things which generally annoy you? Stupid people.
What are the conflicts in your life? Most of my conflicts are with family. My younger sister Ubura – I’m sorry, Beltu-Ishtar – and I have not spoken in many years. She decided to take on the role of goddess permanently, forgetting that we were to be earthly incarnations of the goddess only during worship.
What motivates you? I am motivated by a desire to see Leah’s destiny fulfilled. I do not know what the gods have in store for her, but I know that I am to be a part of that.
What is your sexuality – that is, are you attracted to men, or women, both or neither? Oh, now that is a delightful question. I haven’t even answered it and already you are looking nervous. My attraction is mostly for men, although I have been known to enjoy sexual time with a woman.
Are there any words which people say you use a lot? Perhaps “Don’t be stupid”? Leah once told me that I say that often. If people would stop acting stupidly, I’d say it less often.
I think it’s safe to say that you say child  a lot. Are you a night or day person? I am not sure how a person could be a night person. We are not owls with the ability to see at night, and we naturally want to sleep when Shamash, the sun god, goes to sleep at night.
Are you an introvert or an extrovert?I think … an introvert.
Are you an optimist or a pessimist? I suppose I must be a pessimist, because I find it hard to be hopeful about the world today.
Do you have any special ability or powers? Like all trained priestesses, I have the ability to receive dreams of prophecy. Even when I am not dreaming, I often have a sense about things that are about to happen.

Now I’d like to know what sort of things you enjoy.
What is your favorite type of music? Are there different types? I enjoy listening to people play the lyre. The songs which we sing around the campfire, accompanied by the drum, are very enjoyable.
Books? What are books?
Stories and poetry, then? Oh. Yes, I enjoy that very much. *Sabsutu looks expectant, and then frowns when another question does not come* There are not different types of stories and poems. There are simply stories and poems. And I enjoy them.
Food? I am very fond of a meat and barley porridge that we make for those who are ill. It must be cooked all night and it becomes thick and sweet. Absolutely wonderful. Of course we do not make it often because someone must stay up all through the night stirring the pot.
Drink? Although date beer is very popular in the desert, I must admit that I prefer wine.
Animals? You already asked about food. Oh, as pets? As I said before, I like cats.
Social issues? What does that mean?
It means a problem or concern that affects a specific culture or people. And I’m supposed to have a favourite? If what you mean is which social issues concern me the most, then I would say the horrible rate of deaths in childbirth and the declining lifespans among our people.
Color? I’ve always liked yellow. It is not a popular color, though, and it fades fast.
Clothing? *Sabsutu frowns* I’ve never been one to worry much about clothing. I wear a simple tunic – wool in the winter, linen in the summer. It’s one long piece of cloth which I wrap around my body and tie over my right shoulder. I wear a woolen cloak in the winter. There were people who tried to get me to wear special clothing. *Her voice turns mocking* As befitting my rank. Well, my rank is a midwife, nothing more or less.
Jewelry? That’s another thing that I have never bothered with. I have one bracelet that was … that was given to me by an old friend. Nothing else.
Games? I’ve been known to play a game of dice once or twice in my lifetime. We would carve them from pieces of animal bone.
What is your greatest want? I think I’ve reached the age where there is very little that I want. I suppose I could say that I want to live long enough to see why the gods have such an interest in my little Leah.
What is your greatest need? Need? *Sabsutu looks thoughtful* People toss that word around without thinking about it. I need very little. I need food and water, although not nearly in the quantities which I might wish. I need shelter during bad weather. There was a time when I thought that I needed recognition and wealth. Well, twenty years have passed since I have had either, and I am still surviving.

Now I want you to describe your home, right now. I’m going to ask you a series of questions about your life right now.
Could you describe your home? Certainly. It is a large tent made from panels of woven goat and camel hair.
What are the furnishings in your home? Ah, now there’s the beauty of tent life. We have no furnishings. Not a single couch or table. We have panels of wool. Some of these are used to make the tent. Some are used to create rugs. Some are folded up and used as pillows. They are very versatile, you know.
What is your most cherished possession? *Sabsutu is quiet for a long time* My bracelet. Ask me another question.
What is your neighbourhood like – that is, describe the area right around your home? Oh, the neighbours are very noisy. They bleat all day and night. Of course, if they are noisy enough, we slaughter them and have a feast. The only things around my tent, other than the animals, are other tents. We keep all of the tents very close together in order to provide a degree of safety. Of course, that means I can hear my brother snore from two tents away.
What is the name of the city in which you live? We live outside the city of Harran.
Could you describe it?
During the rainy months, we pitch our tents in the plains. When it grows warmer and drier, we move into the foothills. When the temperature is so high that a person grows weary from sitting in the shade, we move into the mountains where we can still find water. Then we move back to the foothills when the first rains come and back to the plains when the rains become heavy. We move a lot.
I meant the city, actually. As cities go, it is not extremely large. It has grown a lot since I have lived there, however. I haven’t lived in Harran in the past thirty years. However, the city has two main temples – one to the moon god Sin and one to his daughter Ishtar. The royal family has a small palace there, although they rarely stay in it.
Have you ever been married? No. Naditum do not marry.
Do you have any children? *Sabsutu is quiet* I told you, I have never been married.
What is your relationship like with your family? I get along very well with my niece Leah. I think her younger sister is spoiled and needs a stick to her back. Laban and I get along well, although he likes to pretend that we don’t. Ana married an idiot. I told her so and now she doesn’t like me. Although she spends a lot of time in my tent, so I think she only says that to appease the idiot. Bakalum … well, it’s difficult to like someone without the wits to understand normal conversation.
Who is your best friend right now? I can’t really say that I have one.
Do you have any other friends? I really don’t see anyone except my family anymore.
Do you have any enemies? Yes. *She looks off into the distance for a moment.* Yes.
What sort of vehicle do you drive? How do you get around? Vehicle? I don’t know that word. How do I get around? My feet. Do you think I’m some sort of pampered queen who is carried around in a sedan chair? The day that I cannot walk alongside the rest of the family as we move from one camp to the other, that’s the day I sit down and die.
What would you consider your dream career? Oh, child, I already had it. *A slow smile builds.* Did I tell you that I once taught midwifery at a great university? I had thirty students each year. That was when they stopped calling me by my name.
So you were a famous midwife? I know a few things. Of the hundreds of women I assisted, I lost only two.
What would you consider your dream life? Next question.
What is your love life like?My love life? Oh, that is a funny question. Child, look at me. Men do not want old women. It has been at least … thirty years since I have been in the arms of a man. I was young and beautiful then.
You were sixty-five then? Yes. As I said, still young and beautiful. Now, although I am not ancient, I am still too old for most men.
What are your hobbies? What is a hobby?
A hobby is something you do for pleasure, something that isn’t work. Hobbies are not something a person has in the desert, child. We are busy from the moment we wake up until we fall asleep.
What are your finances like? *Sabsutu frowns* Finances? Is that your word for accounting? I have a few coppers that are mine, but mostly I rely on the animals that belong to the entire family.
Do you have any health problems? A few aches and pains that are coming younger than I expected, but nothing serious.
What sort of culture do you live in? Sadly, it seems to be turning into something much like what my parents described. If Bakalum still had his wits about him, I would ask him. However, Amorites have been attacking small villages and nomadic camps like ours. I have heard from traveling merchants that the roads are no longer safe. That is, those few merchants that we see. It becomes difficult to survive on trade when there is no one to trade with. The last caravan that came through, they said that the cost of barley had increased to ten times its normal value. I have never seen anything like that in my lifetime. It is strange, isn’t it? All my life, I have lived in safety, knowing that the king’s men patrolled the main roads and the rule of law applied to all. Now, as I grow old and watch my nieces become adults, the world seems to be falling down around our ears.
What religion do you follow? As in my childhood, I follow the gods of my people. Ishtar is my goddess. Sin is her father, although he tends not to listen to the petitions of women. Ishtar listens to us.
It was amazing talking with you, Sabsutu. Thank you so very much.