“Anita! Is that you?” I was tempted to breathe a sigh of relief, seeing that the head nurse was home again. And, of course, there was a lady who was in labor, waiting, too. Maybe she was breathing a sigh of relief, too!
But, then Anita said,”Are you delivering this baby?” So I sucked my breath back in again and continued praying.
And the baby came, with a cord around his neck…and, thankfully, Anita didn’t leave me in my hour of need. She stepped me right through everything, and gave a helping glove or two when I needed it.
It was about midnight when we left for home. That was how Monday started. Blue. Because it was a boy.
And then, another happy thing came. Remember the premie baby that came a few weeks ago? He is twenty days old now. I had given him up for dead. Not that I wanted to. I was afraid to hope for anything more than that. He had an appointment that they never showed up for. And with as fragile and frail as he was, I didn’t trust it.
But here he came. He was round-faced and so cute. Little old poochy lips, like his mom. And what a grinning, hugging reunion all the nurses had with them. And the dear old grammy was almost in tears.
Then she told us she had been sick. But she did not make a dossier for herself. She said, “I don’t have money.” She made a dossier for the baby, so that he could get meds, but not for herself. I was so touched. Mis Anita said I was allowed to give her some meds for her cough and insomnia, too.
That is enough to make up for the long hours of feeding that baby when I wanted to be home, relaxing myself or sleeping. That little fellow was just eating away like a pro. He still hasn’t gained a lot of weight, but he is looking like he is headed in the right direction.
And the dear little mama, who is mentally handicapped, just smiles when I tell her that the baby is beautiful. Because I mean it. They blessed me. They reminded me of why I came to Haiti in the first place…
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| The mentally handi-capped mom, grandma and myself. |
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| Such a joy to hold the baby and seeing that it’s growing and getting enough food. |
