On A Happier Note

Here is a happy update to my sad Two Graves post of a few weeks ago. One of my friends, Abuk, is related to the young woman who died after giving birth. Last week I asked Abuk where the young woman's baby was. She said that her paternal grandmother was caring for her.

I told Abuk that my teammate Natalie had a can of powdered infant formula that she would be willing to donate to whomever was caring for the baby, if it was needed.

Three days ago Abuk brought the grandma and her sweet little month-old granddaughter to my house. I was very moved to see them. The grandma, Nyibol, is delighted to be taking care of little Awut. Nyibol is nursing her* (see "footnote" below) and supplementing her milk supply with powdered milk.

Nyibol was very happy to get the formula. I showed her how to prepare it and give it to Awut using a small cup (much easier to clean than the bottle she had been using), but also strongly encouraged her to continue to breastfeed Awut before giving formula, and to eat as well as she can and drink lots of water to help her body produce milk.

Isn't she precious? Please pray that Awut would be healthy and grow well, and that her grandma would also be healthy and able to continue to take care of her.

* Many women, even those who are older or who have never had a baby, can produce breast milk if they have a strong will to do so and if the baby suckles often. The suckling stimulates milk production.