Hello. This is Tonya.
Yesterday a little 3 year old girl came to the clinic with a bad ashma attack. Her mother had carried her several miles while her 2 year old brother walked. The doctor was giving her the breathing treatment for quite some time, and it just wasn't working. The doctor said she needed to go to the hospital. The mother said she didn't have money to get down the hill. She was going to walk. It takes more than an hour by truck! The little boy was obviously malnutritioned. It was heartbreaking to watch this situation. We paid for her and her children to go to the hospital, stay the night, and get some food. What if we hadn't been here? I am sure that happens from time to time. What about all the people who are sick, and can't make it to the clinic? I never knew people lived like this! When we walked to the school I saw several houses with children who were not in school. To go to school you need to have shoes and a uniform. Some people can't even afford that. Many of the people only eat 1 meal a day. They can barely afford that. If they don't get an education, there is little chance of them getting a job that pays well enough to get out of that cycle. As a parent I can't imagine... One woman gave birth to a Down Syndrome baby. She was not feeding him, because he wouldn't be a productive worker. She had 8 other children. They convinced her that he could be a productive worker. So she started feeding him. Some don't have enough food to feed the whole family. How do you choose which of you children to feed? He can't go to school if he doesn't have shoes. Also they get the parasites from bare feet. Do you use the money for food or shoes? I can't imagine having to make such decisions! These people work so hard for what little they have.

But even though they have so little their faith in God is soooooo deep! In America we have so much food and stuff, but not so much faith.