Ngambeki?
on Um Zayd wa Atheer (Uganda), 30/Jul/2010 15:10, 34 days ago
This will only be a short blog as there is not much to say. Last Friday whilst at a football tournament in one of the villages (more of that another time) the extra ordinary happened, yet again. Out of the crowd of spectators came a young girl holding a baby and the cloth, for that was all I could see, was put into my arms. I asked if I could look. Here was a 5 week old baby boy with a cleft lip and palate. I encouraged the mother by saying how, by simple surgery her baby could be made beautiful. She stayed for a little while and disappeared. I knew nothing about her, only that she lived in the village of Kinuumi.Over the weekend I thought a lot about what I had seen. By Monday I knew that I held the responsibility to take action and so decided I would visit Kinuumi again to find this family who needed someone's help but had not asked for it. They live in the trading centre, trying to make a few pennies by selling tomatoes. Their home is brick but bare of any comforts, or even basics. I asked for their permission to seek help and the mother could only reply with tears. Twenty four hours later I had emailed the Smile Train, a charity dedicated to helping such children and had received a reply. Next Thursday Mum and Dad, the baby and I are travelling to the outskirts of Kampala to meet a consultant surgeon. How can this have happened so quickly?Usually in the UK surgery is delayed until the baby is 6 months old, time to allow the baby and its parents to bond. This baby unable to suck, is rapidly loosing weight and is becoming malnourished. Spoon feeding with cow's milk is not proving to be adequate. I have been back to the family today and the baby seems weaker than he did 4 days ago. Today we all wept, some tears of joy at the generosity of the Smile Train whose services are totally free and some tears of fear and concern. We have talked about this child being special, a gift to be loved who will be made beautiful like other peoples' babies. First of all we make an unknown journey.The child has been named Ngambeki which means 'What can I say?' Let us say nothing just now but go forward with courage and hope.I am sorry the image has been repeated and I don't know how to delete but maybe that is not a bad thing.