Sunday afternoon the hospital hallway filled with 21 children all walking with some kind of orthopaedic abnormality, all excited to be in a such place filled with white people and wondrous things, all hoping that when they leave this floating ship they will be fixed.
I worked the evening shift in A ward which has now become home to 19 of these patients and 19 of these children’s caregivers, plus two extra babies. At first these little ones sat on their beds with their caregivers, looking around at this strange place called the Africa Mercy. After another nurse and I spread out a mat for the floor and pulled out the lego blocks and cars, they were down on the floor, one sat in my lap and all were intrigued by what they could play with.
After they ate lunch and finished the admission process, including x-rays, blood tests and pre-operative photos, they had already settled in, zooming around the ward, high-5ing all the nurses and cuddling our legs as we tried to get around. Yes, that’s right- my heart has once again been stolen by these little children!
The internet is slow here and today I can’t upload photos much to my disappointment, even though I have tried several times. So, sorry, you’ll have to wait a while longer to see these little ones that I love.
They sound gorgeous -- you would totally be in your element. I can picture you in my mind's eye, with loads of precious children around you. Your mama heart must be soaring. xox
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