“Madam I know that it is your day off but please would you be kind to see the ladies at the beach gate, they have a sad story. ”
I can see from my khondi that there are two ladies, and a child hiding behind 
them. I agree to see the ladies. They walk in the beach gate and behind them is a very shy, thin sickly looking child. I ask how can I help.
One of the ladies speaks broken English, explaining they have walked from Cholokoto Village, which is 12 kms from Cool Runnings. She goes on to say they found the young girl in a small hut on the outer side of the village while they were looking for wood for their cooking fires. The girl was all by herself, and she was vomiting, shaking, and we could see she was not well. We asked about her mother, father, or family members. The young girl didn’t choose to speak; she just lay there on the floor. We gave her some water but she refused. So we decided to carry her to our home, and try to feed her some porridge and give her tea. She accepted a little of it, and then she explained her sister & brothers had died some time back. There was only her and her mother and father left. Three weeks ago her mother died. After the funeral her father just left without taking her. He even took all the katundu (household belongings). She didn’t know where to go or what to do.
“Can we help, she is very sad and very sick,” they asked?
My heart ached to think that a father could just leave their child alone like that. What to do? How to help.
First we had to see if we could get her to eat & drink a little, but she was unable to keep it down. So we had to get her to the hospital, where we could do a blood test, and at least get some fluids in her. Once at the hospital we found her to have malaria, and bilharzia. She was very malnourished, and an HB of 5.9 & HIV positive.
The two women had been in a discussion since we left for the hospital and when I asked what they had been discussing they simply said that they were making arrangements for how they were both going to take care of the young girl for she had been through so much and now she had to get well and the only way she was going to do that was if she had people whom cared and loved her. They had agreed that they both would take her into their homes and look after her.
A few weeks later Mercy was released from hospital into the care of the two ladies who found her. She is recovering well.
By Samantha Ludick