You should have seen it in color
I will never get over how happy these children pictured were. What they lived on and with was impossible for us, yet they smiled more than anyone I knew.
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Honestly though, the only safe water they drink is out of a plastic bag, the clothes they wear either aren’t enough or don’t fit, and they have little to nothing for toys. I saw a child playing with a candy wrapper tied to a string one day. The next day I saw a group of children playing jump rope with a cable.
Not everything I saw made me smile though. As cute as this boy was, he was very sick. He had a fever and couldn't stop sniffling. The 100 degree weather didn't stop him from cuddling up next to me. He just wanted to be held, he had nothing on but underwear. He was absolutely adorable, but it genuinely hurt my heart seeing him so miserable.
This is McKaya, I don't even know where to begin with this girl. She showed me so much love and happiness in just a few short days. Any minute I spent off the job, she spent holding my hand or dancing with me. So much was said with so few words with this little munchkin.
One of my memories with McKaya was when we walked 10 minutes up the mountain to see "the view". She was holding my hand and decided she was going to walk up with us. As we about started up the hill I looked down and noticed she didn't have shoes on (pictures to the right). How this little of a human didn't feel the pain of the gravel underneath her feet is beyond me. As soon as I noticed I picked her up and carried her up and then back down the mountain. This was one of my favorite memories, because I really felt like she knew I cared about her and her well-being.
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I miss you McKaya..
Above is a picture of a little six-year-old girl, who was the size of a 3 year old. The whites of her eyes were tinted yellow, which leads us to believe she may be going through liver failure. It breaks my heart to see such a perfect human having such bad health at a young age. The worst part is knowing that it may go unnoticed, and it may never be cured...
Now you can
Nothing will ever be more powerful than going through these bright smiling faces. These are pictures and memories I will cherish forever and cannot thank them enough for the impact they had on my life.
