Dumela May

I am slowly learning a few Sesotho words. Dumela=hello. May is woman, Ndade is man. That's all I know so far. Luckily, being white everyone knows I can't speak Sesotho and tries to speak to me in English. The only drawback is that they also stare at me. I am one of 3 white people I've seen here.
This morning we took 2 of the babies back to the hospital for a check up. As part of their HIV treatment they get a lot of blood tests, which they were going in for today.The little girl from yesterday, Lulu is doing a bit better today!
I am learning more about what TTL does, and I think some aspects of the organization have changed recently. There is very little maternal health aspect to the program. There is now a global initiative to help reduce transmission of HIV through pregnancy, so now women are cared for at the local clinics and hospitals, where they also receive medication. TTL focuses more on the kids. The kids here have a variety of diseases, including HIV and TB mainly. Most of them are at TTL due to their disease and severe malnutrition. When they come to us they have growth and developmental delays, but children are resilient and it has been amazing to see what nutritious food and proper
medications can do! The kids live at TTL for a few months, usually so they can be stabilized and their nutritional status improved. Many are from remote villages outside Mokhotlong, and their families are unable to bring them back and forth for care. A few of the children are orphans, but most have one living parent. Often, of the mother dies, the fathers are unable to take care of the kids themselves because the women raise the children almost exclusively. At TTL, the women who care for the children are the Bomay, which is just the plural of women in Sesotho. There are around 25 Bomay who alternate, and they are here 24/7 taking care of the kids. We mostly help with feeding the kids at mealtimes, and taking kids to medical appointments.
We got a tour of the hospital today, and met some of the docs. None of them are from Lesotho, most are contracted to come here from nearby countries like Zimbabwe. There are 4 doctors for a population of 100,000 people. I'm excited to spend time in the hospital and hopefully deliver some babies!
Lyle told us yesterday that it is considered bad luck in Lesotho culture to acknowledge that a woman is pregnant, because they believe talking about the baby invites evil spirits to cause problems with the pregnancy. When women go into labor, rather than saying so, they simply say they're "not feeling well." What an understatement! I will try to keep all these things in mind if I encounter pregnant women here.
In the afternoon we finally walked into Mokhotlong and did some shopping. There is one street in town, and "stores" are basically shacks with 3 sides where people sell things along the side of the road. There are a few grocery stores, which are pretty basic. The fruits and vegetables are always old, as it is a long drive from the capital to Mokhotlong and shipments are infrequent. There are a couple souvenirs i am excited to purchase here. First, a Besotho blanket. (pictured below) The locals wear these and they come in many beautiful patterns. The way you wear your blanket has meaning. You wrap it a different way of you're engaged, married, pregnant, in mourning, etc. The women carry their children wrapped in these blankets on their backs, like a makeshift baby bjorn!
We ran into some local kids on their way home from school today and asked to take a picture. They didn't quite get the idea of smiling for the camera, but I'll share the pic anyhow.
Tomorrow, we are going on outreach, which is where we visit the villages where former TTL kids live, to check on them and see how they're doing since leaving.
Hope everyone's well in the US.
Love from Lesotho!
H