Very often, women were expected to continue their daily chores up until the late stages of labour and endure labour pains without the aid of pain management.
Families that can not afford other means to take care of the daily ins and outs of running a household rely on women to complete everyday chores and care.
One of his childhood chores was to heat the water pipes in his family's basement with a blowtorch in the winter to keep them from freezing and bursting.