Angel with a mop

 

On any given day, a wide variety of people come to our clinic's doors.  About the only thing that is predictable is that there will be a good number of children.  This is especially true on Tuesdays when we offer free vacinations.  Even parents who are poor and cannot read or write know the importance of this.  For instance this little girl is about five, and her only previous visit was when she was one and came for her shots.  Even today, she was just accompanying her mother for her little brother's vaccination.  She was happy until we asked her name, but this made her afraid that she would get a shot too and she wouldn't tell us.  So we were calling her Moppet because she was fascinated by the mop and rolling bucket; perhaps never seeing one before.  When we

found out her real name, it was surprisingly  appropriate.  Her last name is Cherubin.  Her exact age is unkown, because like many of the poor, there is no record of her actual birthday.  Not that she isn't cared for. Her clean dress and carefully corn-rowed hair speak to that.  And her mother's smile was radiant when we showed her these photos.  But you can tell when children come from the poorer homes - she was barefoot, small for her age and didn't have any plastic barrets in her hair.  So even though she will never have a birthday party, we can help her have a healthy and happy life.  Is there anyone who deserves it more, or less?