Holdin' Babies and Riskin' Scabies!

Those of you who know me well know that I am not a germaphobe. I use public restrooms, I don't use hand sanitizer, I let my kids lick shopping carts... so Haiti has been very tough for me. I forget to sanitize between patients or that that weird spot on his head might be contagious. But I think it helps, because I'm not afraid to love the babies. Or the toddlers. Or whoever might want to sit on my lap. This kid, for example:





He was sent to the pharmacy for a scabies treatment, but when I told him to come to me, he just plunked down in my lap! Courtney and I both got prophylactic scabies treatments tonight!

Today's orphanage was in Cite Soleil. You can google it if you'd like to be scared for me, but I'll just tell you that it's the largest slum in the northern hemisphere, and perhaps - since the earthquake - the world. When the earthquake hit, local legend has it, the prison guards thought the world was ending and they opened the doors and let the prisoners out. Equally likely, they escaped in the ensuing chaos, but either way they're reputed to be hiding out in Cite Soleil which was already dangerous and run by gangs.








There are 400,000 residents in Cite Soleil, and not a single building. All the shelters are either tents or cobbled together from found parts. I knew this, and i was still blown away to pull up to the orphanage. Fortunately, i recovered when i was greeted by this little guy:





Although I find a little irony in the fact that this tent says "US AID"






When this is their school:





And this is their kitchen:






Lots of heartache today. Youngest on the list is twin girls. They must be a year old judging by their skulls (Jenny made that call) and their teeth (Courtney) but neither of them weighs 10 pounds. They are skin and bones, and they have barely any muscle strength at all. The woman in charge of the place said their momma is a prostitute, and the daddy was feeding them sugar water mixed with bread. They've been at the orphanage for five months, but they don't seem to be getting better. Anne - who wins "bomb diggity of the day" for her heroic actions - came out of a twenty-year retirement to draw blood from both girls so that they could be tested for AIDS, among other things. We will likely go get them tomorrow or Thursday, when the paperwork can get worked out.





Seated between us is a fifteen year old boy. The confused look on my face is just my listening face. He is definitely a leader in the community, and had been there since he was four (although his mother died in the earthquake). When Stefanie handed out dot-to-dot coloring pages, I caught him quizzing the younger children on their numbers. I was impressed with how readily he grabbed that teachable moment. He spoke some English, which he said he'd just picked up. I said that he must be smart, and he agreed. I asked if he wanted to go to university, and he said he just wanted to eat three meals a day.

The children sang us a welcome song when we arrived, and they were so delightful and happy and charming. Several had scabies, and various ear infections, but were for the most part remarkably healthy and had good teeth! Sadly, they were all very malnourished. They were loved, they were cared for, they were taught, and they were happy. But they were hungry.





Michelle, Wilna, and Chris went out during the clinic to buy bags of rice and beans for them. I don't know if these kids dressed up for us or not, but their clothes were pitiful. They were way too small or way too big, many of them were ripped, and lots of them were simply inappropriate - velvet dresses and camo Sweaters(!). Check out little guy here wearing two different shoes ( and playing a mean bumpy-metal-sheet-and-spoon ).





This little girl is wearing a doll's dress from the My Size Barbie collection. And, no, I didn't just catch her at a bad moment; this is what she looked like the entire time. It is possible that she wasn't familiar with blancs, or that she associated doctors with shots, but that would make her a stand-alone in this crowd of camera hounds and lollipop lovers. Dissociation this extreme usually comes from abuse so bad that you simply choose not to participate in reality.





But, it was an honest to goodness happy place, so I want to leave you with the image I carry with me.