So many things to talk about. So little time. An internet 'service' that is possessed of evil, reincarnated spirits. But here I am for a few moments, anyway. And even though I write this for the benefit of everyone, I am especially thinking of Brad and Diane Lien, Hal and Kay Carman, and Kris and Adrian Carbine. Here is the way your beautiful children most likely got their start in life:
Last week, Vennila and I took a break from all the work we have been doing and we went to the hospital to see our friend who had just delivered a little baby boy.
I'll do my best to describe the scene for you, but I may not have adequate words or the emotional reserves. We'll see how it goes.
A public hospital in a third world country. H-m-m-m-m. How to tell you? When we arrived at the hospital, there were women everywhere in various stages of their pregnancies sitting or lying in the dirt outside of the entrance to the 'hospital'. The hospital itself resembled a parking garage - a very dirty parking garage. We walked up a long, filthy, enclosed bare cement ramp until we reached the maternity ward. This is what I saw:
We entered a large room with four rows of approximately 15 beds in each row. Upon each bed lay a new mother and her newborn baby. I did not see a single baby that was not underweight and malnourished. Our friend's baby weighed less than five pounds at birth. I'm not a doctor, but I didn't have to be to see that at least half of the babies there should have been in some kind of intensive care unit. No baby had a diaper on. No mother had even a blanket or a pillow. What little clothing the babies wore had been provided by their mothers. Forget the fathers. Nearly 50 of them were no-shows.
Our friend's 'husband' had already abused her and kicked her out to sleep in the streets many times during her pregnancy. She had the misfortune to be born with a leg deformity that causes a significant, noticeable limp. Undesirable women are married to 'men' (I use this term loosely) who are likely going to be abusive, alcoholic, worthless, jobless, jerks. Our friend's husband did not even bother to come to the hospital to see his son. When she leaves the hospital with her underweight child, she will have to throw herself upon the mercy of family members who may or may not feel inclined to care for or feed two more people. Her husband has kicked her out into the streets for good.
Brad and Diane, Hal and Kay, Kris and Adrian, this is very likely how your own beautiful children got their own starts in life. I hope enough time hasn't gone by that you don't kiss and hold them at every opportunity. Tell them that you love them every time you speak their names. For every child you rescued, there are thousands of children who have entered life with no safety net of any kind. India has the highest infant mortality rate in the world. India is a country with no soul.
Every day, we see such sadness, it overwhelms us. We are living out of the safety of an organized 'tour' group or service organization. We see things tourists are protected from seeing.
Our own beautiful Vennila's two beautiful boys each weighed less than five pounds at birth. She was fifteen when Stephen was born and seventeen when Michael came along. Her sons were born in a maternity ward like the one I just tried to describe. Her 'husband' did not come to see her.
This is so long. It is so sad. When I'm not poking fun of India and Indians, I'm crying. Mike has cried. We have been humbled every day. There is PLENTY of situations that have been hilarious. I would have rather told you about those. Somehow, it just didn't seem appropriate until I described how so many of God's precious children begin their lives. May God bless the children of India forever. Give them the souls that their government lacks.
The internet will be gone a few minutes. I did not and could not give this experience the respect and anguish that I felt. I'm so sorry. When Vennila and I left our friend, she was sobbing uncontrollably. All that I could do was tell her that with her baby boy, she had a reason to live, a soul to love, a future to work toward, and a son who would grow up one day to love her. Was I wrong to say so? Please, God. Don't let it be so.
Bye for now.
Last week, Vennila and I took a break from all the work we have been doing and we went to the hospital to see our friend who had just delivered a little baby boy.
I'll do my best to describe the scene for you, but I may not have adequate words or the emotional reserves. We'll see how it goes.
A public hospital in a third world country. H-m-m-m-m. How to tell you? When we arrived at the hospital, there were women everywhere in various stages of their pregnancies sitting or lying in the dirt outside of the entrance to the 'hospital'. The hospital itself resembled a parking garage - a very dirty parking garage. We walked up a long, filthy, enclosed bare cement ramp until we reached the maternity ward. This is what I saw:
We entered a large room with four rows of approximately 15 beds in each row. Upon each bed lay a new mother and her newborn baby. I did not see a single baby that was not underweight and malnourished. Our friend's baby weighed less than five pounds at birth. I'm not a doctor, but I didn't have to be to see that at least half of the babies there should have been in some kind of intensive care unit. No baby had a diaper on. No mother had even a blanket or a pillow. What little clothing the babies wore had been provided by their mothers. Forget the fathers. Nearly 50 of them were no-shows.
Our friend's 'husband' had already abused her and kicked her out to sleep in the streets many times during her pregnancy. She had the misfortune to be born with a leg deformity that causes a significant, noticeable limp. Undesirable women are married to 'men' (I use this term loosely) who are likely going to be abusive, alcoholic, worthless, jobless, jerks. Our friend's husband did not even bother to come to the hospital to see his son. When she leaves the hospital with her underweight child, she will have to throw herself upon the mercy of family members who may or may not feel inclined to care for or feed two more people. Her husband has kicked her out into the streets for good.
Brad and Diane, Hal and Kay, Kris and Adrian, this is very likely how your own beautiful children got their own starts in life. I hope enough time hasn't gone by that you don't kiss and hold them at every opportunity. Tell them that you love them every time you speak their names. For every child you rescued, there are thousands of children who have entered life with no safety net of any kind. India has the highest infant mortality rate in the world. India is a country with no soul.
Every day, we see such sadness, it overwhelms us. We are living out of the safety of an organized 'tour' group or service organization. We see things tourists are protected from seeing.
Our own beautiful Vennila's two beautiful boys each weighed less than five pounds at birth. She was fifteen when Stephen was born and seventeen when Michael came along. Her sons were born in a maternity ward like the one I just tried to describe. Her 'husband' did not come to see her.
This is so long. It is so sad. When I'm not poking fun of India and Indians, I'm crying. Mike has cried. We have been humbled every day. There is PLENTY of situations that have been hilarious. I would have rather told you about those. Somehow, it just didn't seem appropriate until I described how so many of God's precious children begin their lives. May God bless the children of India forever. Give them the souls that their government lacks.
The internet will be gone a few minutes. I did not and could not give this experience the respect and anguish that I felt. I'm so sorry. When Vennila and I left our friend, she was sobbing uncontrollably. All that I could do was tell her that with her baby boy, she had a reason to live, a soul to love, a future to work toward, and a son who would grow up one day to love her. Was I wrong to say so? Please, God. Don't let it be so.
Bye for now.
