When Rose Blooms
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Every 30 seconds a child dies from hunger or preventable diseases. All children come into the world ready to grow and thrive. They want to be fed and they need to feel loved. The GOD’S CHILD Project’s center for malnourished infants (www.CasaJackson.org) is dedicated to saving children from a horrible death of starvation and also curing the underlying conditions that lead to malnourishment. Please consider giving a tax-deductible donation today. One story that particularly touched our heart was Rosa’s story.
Rose was found when Señor Garrido made his daily garbage collection rounds like a thousand times before. He removed trash from behind one house, then another. Rags and junk, an old doll, a soiled shirt, a pile of . . .
Baby.
Unable to believe his eyes, Garrido looked again. Barely blinking. Not daring to move. Eventually, slowly, he reached through discarded newspapers and greasy chicken bones to pull out a newborn infant, her umbilical cord still attached.
Hoping with every ounce of his will that she was still alive, he moved his fingers underneath her tiny mouth. To his surprise, a weak stream of breath gently escaped her little lips.
Rosa’s new family became The God’s Child Project. Her bed would be in our Casa Jackson Malnutrition Center. At first it was hard for volunteers and staff to hold Rosa, who was in a lot of pain and hurt by any touch. Yet soft, human touch is exactly what tiny Rosa needed to know she was loved.
Little by little she healed. We watched in anticipation as the little dot on her medical chart slowly crept into the safety range for her size and weight. Rosa is not the first, and sadly, not likely to be the last child to come to Casa Jackson because they simply have nowhere else to go.
In a world where people sometimes feel forced to make unimaginably horrible decisions, we offer other options. Above all, our greatest need at Casa Jackson is for “huggers and holders”: volunteers to gently cradle an abandoned child and let it feel the healing power of love.
Among the trash and biting ants, there is no way to wish an abandoned newborn “Happy Birthday.” There is no one to say, “I love you.” Though, in Casa Jackson and throughout The God’s Child Project, that’s what we do best.
As an organization dependent entirely on donations, the tough economic conditions are making us think about unimaginable decisions. These decisions involve having to turn away children pleading for our help. We are working hard and hoping harder that with your support we will not need to do this.
So this is our plea to you to open your door to the children of The God’s Child Project. Join us as work to save vulnerable children placed in unimaginable circumstances. Take a look at our alternative giving wish list at GodsChild.org. Please send this plea on to friend and family and please help us with a donation. In this season of giving please give a donation that will save a life. Visit casajackson.org and give a gift that will save a poor malnourished infant’s life.
If it took you ten minutes to read this article, 20 innocent lives were just lost. But it does not need to be that way. You can help us make a different. Also, please Facebook and tweet this article. With 10 seconds of clicking, you can help us save lives!
About the Author
Luke Maguire Armstrong lives in Guatemala directing the humanitarian aid organization, Nuestros Ahijados. His book of poetry, iPoems for the Dolphins to Click Home About (available for sale on Amazon.com) is especially enjoyed by people who “don’t read poetry.” (@lukespartacus)