Babies in Brasov

Brasov is a beautiful mountain city in the center of Romania. I had the privilege of spending a day there last week where I had the opportunity to spend some time with Amanda Towle, a social worker from Nampa, Idaho. She came to Romania in September to spend 6 weeks conducting training sessions and assisting the workers and caregivers in our Brasov Family Centers. I was able to receive some valuable instruction from her as well as accompany her to the local hospital for a 3-hour volunteer shift.

I wasn’t sure what to expect at the hospital, but I had been told I would be helping with the babies. I had imagined sick babies, but aside from a few signs of colds and occasional bandages here and there, the babies appeared healthy. I soon discovered that many of them are there because their parents are temporarily unable to care for them. Some cannot afford the food, others are too young (the parents of one child are only 14 years old!), and I’m sure there are numerous other reasons. So, the babies are left at the hospital where they are given a bed and a number in one of the many rooms set aside for the infants. The nurses come by each room to feed and change the babies on a regular schedule several times each day. Fortunately, there are volunteers who come to help with the process and provide a little extra attention to the babies. I personally visited 6-7 rooms on two different floors. Between three to six babies occupied each room…although there were often several other vacant cribs in the room available if necessary. The rooms were relatively clean and bright, many of them with colorful paintings on the wall. There were just so many babies and so few hands to hold them that it broke my heart. I’m not very experienced with babies since most of my volunteer work is with children 3+, but it didn’t matter!! Really, it didn’t matter to these babies that I was a bit awkward with the bottle or that I struggled with lowering the crib railing…the fact that I held them and talked to them and fed them and played with them was all that mattered. It was so amazing to see their eyes fixed on me and feel their little bodies melt into my arms. One little girl was so serious when I first picked her up. She just stared at my mouth…I wonder now if it was the strange language I was speaking that threw her off. She might have been 8 months old, it’s hard to say. For at least 10 minutes I couldn’t get her to smile…and then suddenly, she decided I was okay and for the rest of the visit she was smiling and laughing like crazy. I loved seeing each baby smile and hearing the laughter…even if it was only for a moment. As I put each child back into their crib I said a prayer for them as they began to whimper and then forced myself to move onto the next room…with the sound of bitter cries piercing the air as I left. For me, that was the hardest part of all.

This experience lingers with me and I hope to return again in the near future.