A heartbreaking thing happened today. I was on my way home from the nutrition clinic walking to meet the kids and Scott. I noticed this peppy little girl, about 8 years old, walking by herself ahead of me. She was way too young to be walking by herself through the busy streets of Cusco. I looked around for an adult near her. There was no one. I sped up to get behind her and saw her shoes; they were broken, worn, torn, and disgusting. I then saw her stop at a restaurant to look at the menu. (Could she read?) We came to a stoplight and I said "HOLA". She looked at me and flashed me a small smile and had the cutest face I have ever seen (besides Lucas and Sydney, of course). I followed her up to the street where I was turning. I stopped next to her, leaned down, said hi again and asked her where her parents were. She opened her mouth to respond to me (with still the CUTEST face you have ever seen) and her teeth were actively rotting out of her mouth. I have seen a lot of rotting teeth; this was the worst. She told me her parents are at home and she is going home now. I asked her if she was hungry and she said yes and then took off. I had a energy bar in my backpack, but I could not get it to her fast enough. I felt so badly. Hungry kids make me sad.
No comments:
Post a Comment