Suzie

Picture a screaming, dirty, smelly child who barely knows how to walk. The only two words she can say are Momma and Stella (my name in the village). She is surrounded by fifty other children who are equally as dirty as she is. Her mother is gone from dawn till dusk. The two caretakers in her life are Lloyd, her six year old brother and Pricilla, her three year old sister. Her clothes are ragged with only one change of clothes; no diapers, no panties and no pants. She and her siblings rarely eat, because their mother has very little money. They have no father, and the people in the village look down on them because of something their mother did. Her mother is very poor, and they only eat one to two scanty meals a day. She has sores all over her body, she is bloated from hunger, and her hair is a sandy brown from malnourishment. She is only fifteen months, and has to fend for herself. Life is a struggle for this little fifteen month old girl, named Suzie.


Suzie, her mother, and I


Suzie's dirty face


a bit cleaner


the first time I saw her

Now picture this same little girl – Suzie – but in totally different circumstances. Now, she is a clean, laughing and smiling child who has progressed very rapidly in walking. She still can only say Momma and Stella, but we are working on Mulungu (God). Surrounding her are kind and loving people, who want to take care of her. Her clothes are new and clean, and she takes a bath twice a day (with the dust over here, it could easily be four times a day). She still has no father, but mine has kindly taken his place. She has seven “mothers” ready and willing to take care of her. What a number! Only one is the real one. There is plenty of food for her at our house, a comfortable bed, and fun toys. Her sores are quickly healing, her stomach is slowly looking more normal, and her hair is a little bit better.


sleeping beauty


i guess we can be pretty weird sometimes


her favorite toy


how much can I get in there?


her "look"


what's so funny?


bwelakuno

We love taking care of Suzie. She is the sweetest and quietest baby ever. Her mother realizes now that people care about her and her family. She now tries to take care of herself and her children, and we always find Suzie very clean. I thank God that we have this opportunity to invest in someone’s life.


my baby and I