Week one in the hospital with the babies is complete. The first five days are a time of adjustment and going through the motions as you learn the schedule and the babies' personalities. This is my third time volunteering; I still go through that process. No matter how many times a person comes to volunteer, when you walk into a room and see hands reaching through crib bars, your heart plummets. There is a moment when you ask yourself, "Why am I doing this? I don't want to see their faces. I should have stayed home." But that moment doesn't last. As soon as you pick up one of the babies, those big brown eyes lock with yours, little hands clutch your shirt, and an ear to ear smile displays a toothless mouth. That is when you realize you are right where you need to be, and the doubts disappear.
As mentioned in a previous post, the hospital does not allow volunteers to take pictures due to confidentiality/safety issues. Hospital supervisors occasionally snap pictures of us with the babies, so at a later date, I am hopeful I will be able to share some of them with those of you who are following this journey. In the meantime, I will attempt to paint word pictures of the children.
Baby 'I' is the first one I held. She is battling pneumonia and has a terrible rattling cough. Her face was in a perpetual frown for three days, but by Wednesday, she seemed to be feeling slightly better. I got a smile out of her! On Thursday, I gave her a breathing treatment, which resulted in 20 minutes of crying and screaming. She was not happy to have a plastic mask placed on her face, and she let me know it! She cannot hold her head up, so I would guess her age to be around three months, but again, she might be older and just lagging developmentally.
Baby 'R' is 15 months old, but is the size of a six to nine-month-old. From what I can gather, she arrived at the hospital several weeks ago, severely malnourished. Her skin was sagging like an oversize coat. I could barely believe it when I was given that information because she is now referred to as 'The Squirrel' due to her chubby cheeks. A consistent feeding schedule is working wonders. She is an absolute doll---always smiling, giggling, or intently staring at us from across the room, a slight smile showing one tiny tooth.
Little Guy (he doesn't have name, that I know of) was abandoned. He lives in an orphanage, but is at the hospital because he cannot gain weight. He has Down's Syndrome. An IV line and a feeding tube are inserted in his hand and nose. I held him a few times throughout the week, but by Thursday, he had been admitted to the ICU. He is very weak and fragile, and judging by the reactions of others, survival seems far-fetched at this point.
Baby 'M' has been at the hospital for several months. She is a fire cracker. She will scream and her face turns red whenever no one is paying attention to her. She is responsive and enjoys interacting with the toys and books we bring to the room each day.
There was a baby boy (approximately 5 months old) on Tuesday who had been left at the hospital because his mom told a nurse, "I have too many children at home. I cannot feed another one." He appeared to be healthy, and it was apparent he was accustomed to being held. Being left for hours on end in a crib was new to him. He looked so lost. Two days later, he was gone. I'm hopeful his mom returned, or he went to a foster care placement. Again, due to confidentiality, we are rarely informed of the reason for a child's disappearance from the hospital.
Baby 'Ma' is bright-eyed, can sit up, and will stand with assistance. Evidently, she finds my facial expressions to be hilarious because every time I look at her, even from across the room, she cracks up!
Baby 'L' has thick black hair, a unibrow, and a slight mustache. He looks like he should be an Italian artist during the Renaissance. He has an extra finger hanging from one hand, and a perpetual expression of, "Cool, dude! That was awesome!" on his face. He has such a pleasant personality! When I stand him up in my lap, he has a difficult time looking me in the eye because his head hangs down due to constantly laying on his back in a crib.
There are several other babies at the hospital, and I will describe them in future posts throughout the coming weeks.
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