Låna's Pregnancy: Told by Påle' Eric Forbes Artwork

Red Rice & Fina'denne'

A storytelling podcast where your host, Jay Castro, navigates connection to his CHamoru heritage and the people from the Mariana Islands. Red Rice and fina’denne’ sauce is a staple to the CHamoru cuisine, and it's been part of our people for a long time. The rice is stained with achiote, and the finadene sauce gives traditional dishes like red rice, a pop—a taste that has you going back for more. And that’s the pop of this podcast, a tall story that’ll have you coming back for more. https://hafaadai.org/

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Red Rice & Fina'denne'

Låna's Pregnancy: Told by Påle' Eric Forbes

December 01, 2025 • Jay Castro • Season 1 • Episode 14

0:00 | 1:47

Round belly or point belly? What happens when your pregnancy shows both? Short CHamoru story told by Påle' Eric Forbes.

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Storyteller: Påle' Eric Forbes.

CHamoru, Chamorro, Guam, Guåhan, Marianas Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Pacific Islands, Micronesia, Indigenous, Native Pacific, talk story, Red Rice podcast, fina'denne', Jay Byrd Castro, CHamoru folklore, Låna, pregnancy legend, Påle Eric Forbes,

Jay Castro 0:00

Hafa adai and welcome to the Red Rice Podcast. Thanks for being here. This one is titled Lana's Pregnancy. It's from the Marianas Islands, the Chamorro Culture, and is told by Pale Eric Forbes.

Påle Eric Forbes 0:13

It was Låna's first time to be pregnant. And when she was already six months, people were saying it would be a boy because her stomach was pointy. The old people believed if the pregnant woman's belly was pointy, it would be a boy. But if round, then it would be a girl. But the next day, Lana's belly was round. And each following day it was that way. One day round, the next day pointy. So when Lana gave birth, she gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl. Her godmother said, For sure, Lana ate an egg with two yolks.

Jay Castro 1:03

Yo, if you want twins, you better get out there and go buy some eggs and potentially even spend your life savings trying to get them right now in 2025. Damn, eggs are expensive. Lana must have been a farmer working on the lanchu. But I will say this: in many indigenous cultures, the double yolk egg does mean good luck and prosperity. But it could also mean a pregnancy. I'll see you next time on the Red Rice Podcast.