Visit to the Baby Orphanage

Nothing can be more overwhelming than one's first visit to the Baby Orphanage. Four days a week, folks gather at the Chapel for the journey to the Orphanage to feed, clean, and play with up to 69 babies. Today was all medical folks, many for the second and third trip. As for me, it was my first. I followed everyone else's lead and sat down on the mat in one of the open rooms. Almost immediately, I was surrounded by toddlers climbing up on my lap, just wanting to be cuddled and held. Before long, one of the workers pointed to me to begin feeding one of the toddlers. She handed me two bowls, one that looked like cheese grits and the other with some type of fruit baby food. The toddler eagerly ate the food with very little coaxing from me. As the babies were fed and cleaned, we loaded our belongings and headed back to camp.