Broken Flower Pots

On Friday, we welcomed a new arrival. Didley comes to us from Cabaret. Although his mother believes that he was born at a gestation of 7 months, our assessment of him suggests that he was actually born at 39 weeks. Didley's mother is in her late 20's and Didley is her fifth child. She hopes to complete her schooling, but she is overwhelmed, and she believes that giving Didley up for adoption will be a life-saving and life-altering thing.

I checked up on him this afternoon. Didley appears to be strong and healthy. He is a beautiful baby boy. Since his birth-weight is a little bit low, we have started him on a milk formula that is specially formulated to promote growth and weigth-gain in low birth weight babies. Didley is in an incubator, so that we can observe him closely throughout the day and night.

May you live the life your birth mother dreamed for you, little man!Out on the NICU balcony, Kervens, Rosena and the other babies were enjoying the warm rays of the afternoon sun. Kervens has doubled his weight in the three months since we admitted him. You are a miracle I told him - a feisty one, and a chubby one but definitely a miracle! His Mother notices that he is much smaller than our other babies, which makes her anxious. I have explained to her that Kervens growth has been stunted by malnutrition, and it is going to take several months, maybe a year to 18 months until he catches up with other children his age. He is adorable though, with his round cheeks and dimpled thighs. He is doing so well, that we are planning to discharge him home this week.And my little darling Rosena, snoozing in a car seat..... They say her stomach is never full. She can certainly pack it away. I am so proud of her for that, and secretly, I think the nannies are too. 'It's your Godmother, Susan who spoils you,' they tease. 'Every time you see her, you cry and you tell her its feeding time,' and, ' You have no respect for schedules, Rosena!'

Well, I am sure I saw 'spoiling' listed under the duties of the God-mother on the job description. And I am sure also, that Rosena should be allowed to eat just as much as she wants! She is filling out nicely. After three weeks of treatment, she was a healthy weight for her length. We will continue to offer unlimited, high calorie feeds, to help restore her depleted mineral stores and to promote catch-up growth.

We have a great formula, for these babies, I thought to myself, chuckling. Plenty of fluids, excellent nutrition, and a healthy dose of sunshine. Then, like wilting flowers, in broken pots, transferred to a beautiful garden and rich soil, they flourish. It is love though, and not rain that showers down on them.