Visiting the Hospital

Yesterday afternoon we went to a public hospital and visited the sick children. There are two sides to the children's wing. One side is for children who are very sick with AIDS, TB, and other illnesses and the other side is for children who have broken bones or other less complicated types of problems. We took some coloring books and crayons that Lois put together and some beanie babies, dolls, matchbox cars, and candy that we brought with us from the States. Steve brought along his Polaroid camera too and we took some photos of the kids that we let them keep. In the side where the children are very sick we could tell they were happy to see us, but many of them didn't have the energy to really sit up or get excited. It was tough to see some of the kids who were very skinny and much smaller than other kids their age. There was a five month old baby who looked maybe a month old. Liam is 5 months old and he was easily three times the size of this sick little one. Some of them were on breathing machines and most of them just felt so rotten that we couldn't even get a smile out of them. On the other side of the wing though, the children were thrilled to see us and very happy to have visitors bearing gifts! Most of them are not so sick that they have to stay in bed all day and are able to get up and sit in a playroom and color or play with small toys. (We thought it was very strange that here in South Africa if you break a bone, you stay in the hospital for a week. There were lots of children with broken bones on the not-so-sick side.) It must be terribly boring for them at the hospital and we were so happy to bring them some activity and excitement. The photos were a very big hit with both groups for different reasons. The children who weren't feeling too bad were excited to see photos of themselves and smile for the camera and the very ill children had mother's with them who were happy to get a photo with their child as it may be one of the only photos they ever have with their children. It's very sad.

We've had a chance to see a lot since we've been in South Africa. We've gotten to see the complete picture of what it's like here, why it's like this, and what the needs are. Of course we don't have all or (maybe any) of the answers, but we're starting to be able to fit the puzzle together. We've seen the mine where all the miners are working and where HIV really began to spread. We've seen some of the villages and the dump where they are all living below poverty in tight spaces with little to no food and water. We've seen the children at Morning Star who are all HIV positive. We've seen the children at the hospital who are sick. And we've seen the cemetary where hundreds of children are buried each month. While there is a lot of devastation and things to be sad about here, we've also heard the laughter of the children here at The Pines. We've seen the children at Morning Star sing their little hearts out. We've seen the women at Morning Star who make the embroidered items beaming with pride when we purchase the things they've made. We've seen the children in the villages go crazy to be in photographs and meet the "Americans". And we've seen children at the hospital smile and be excited even when they feel crummy because we've brought them something as small as a coloring book and some candy. There might be a lot of poverty and sickness here, but there's also a lot of gratitude and appreciation when you show them you care. That gratitude has made this trip very special to each one of us. We would have been happy to come and help these people regardless, but when you see how thankful they are it makes it all the more worth it.

Praise God!