Lion King Redux

In an earlier blog, you'll recall how a clinic full of Haitians made it their collective business to figure out an injured 6-year old's identity.  That story ended well enough. . .the gashes were stitched and the little guy escorted home by an aunt that was quickly located. . .but it represents but one aspect of a complicated and sometimes conflicted "family" culture here.

Since we're around the clinic quite a bit, the first thing you can see is that seldom does a patient arrive without at least one family member in tow.  Many walk to the clinic, and others ride together in. . .er, "on" a taxi (2nd and 3rd seats on a Chinese-made motorbike) navigating dirt roads easily confused with plain 'ole rocky hillsides!

Young mothers bring their newborns, sporting no obvious signs of distress in triage, but wanting reassurance that the appearance of a healthy baby is just that.

We've seen moms with large families, and wonder how. . .given the very tough conditions here. . .they can properly care for them.  That said, mothers and children were always neatly attired, and respectful of the staff (except for the occasional shot. . .how much we have in common!).

The clinic offers family planning counseling, provided not by the Haitian Government (who can't afford it) but through a U.S. agency.  Various treatments are available to moms wanting to manage the size of their families, all free.  When you think about the incredibly high unemployment here, you have to wonder what folks do with their time. . .you have to wonder why a fairly significant number of dads check out and become serial dads. . .and you have to conclude that the very best family planning "treatment" might be a resurgent economy.

This would be a kindler, gentler "circle of life" for the warm, willing and capable folks of Haiti.  The news back home sometimes make the desperation here seem impossible to overcome.  On the ground,  though, it's about making whatever difference you can with anyone you can whenever you can.  Make no mistake, wherever possible, it should be about teaching the Haitians how to fish (rather than shipping boatload after boatload of fish) so they can build a better, more family-friendly economy.