Helping
Strictly speaking there is no verb “to help”. There is, rather, a postposition la “helping, in aid of”, which is used together with a verb that specifies the activity in which help is provided. For example:
| 'Uloo |
duje |
oola |
oonasyin |
| mother |
huckleberries |
in aid of her |
I picked |
| I helped my mother pick huckleberries. |
| Sulhtus |
sla |
buta'ut'en. |
| my sister |
in aid of me |
she is cooking |
| My sister is helping me cook. |
The object of la indicates who is receiving help. To indicate that someone is helping without specifying the activity, a vague verb like “work, do” is used.
| Nezih |
whut'i |
te |
tube |
nela |
'ut'en |
| beside us |
he resides |
when |
really |
in aid of us |
he does |
| Whenever he is living with us he helps us a lot. |
