A couple days ago Abbi and I and one of our friends here, Nicci, went down to the Ped's ward to hand out some balloons, paints, and paper. It doesn't take much to start a party with kids that aren't accustomed to such festivities!
Nicci, a pediatric nurse from New York had a bunch of kid's stuff donated from her church that she wanted to pass out to the kids before she leaves this week. The Ped's Ward right now is very full, and there are literally sick children sleeping on mattresses on the floor. It was such a sight to see all the kids throwing balloons in the air and so excited to get some water paints and colored pencils! It was especially nice for the kids who are "in traction," having to sit in the same position for three weeks in order to let their broken their thigh bones heal.
The one little guy who really touched our hearts is a little nine year old boy. He is an HIV orphan and lives with his "sekuru" or grandfather, his father dead from HIV related illness and his mother having abandoned him. He is severely malnourished, weighing 10 kg ( about 22 lbs), significantly less than my 2 year old! He has Noma, a condition of malnutrition which causes a hole to rot all the way through his cheek. There is a hole about the size of a quarter in his right cheek- all his teeth on that side are visible with his mouth closed. He actually smiled when we gave him a balloon, which probably took most of the strength he has. Please pray for him as he probably will not live very long.
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