This little boy’s smile will be forever imprinted in my mind. He will always be in my heart. I knew from thesecond I laid eyes on him that he was very ill and suffering from severe malnutrition. And yet he smiled-a wide toothy smile. As I assessed him, I noticed the muscle wasting, the sunken eyes, the bony prominences, and the deformed painful fingers and toes from jiggers infestation. Still he smiled at me. I wanted to cry.  I was told the hospital here would do nothing for him; my heart was breaking. He needed intensive medical intervention. It was not available for him. I know what the future holds for him. I am devastated.
I went back to triage and found him the last of our wooden cars. I so desperately wanted to give him something. I couldn’t believe his smile could get bigger.

Nancy