2 years old and starving

The children's stories are incredible. I met a little girl named Gaby that just four months ago was about to die from malnutrition. She was two years old and weighed 18 pounds. Her hair was falling out in patches. She spent a week in the hospital and was bed ridden another week. She had been ignored (and perhaps abused) to the point that she acted out wildly. She used to crawl around trying to bite others and refused to talk. Until recently the foster family couldn't take her out in public because she feared people. They think she was kept in complete isolation. Today she is doing a lot better. She's gained about 8 pounds and is slowly starting to talk. She warmed up to me =) and I spent a good while on the swings with her. Then she got the courage to participate in the pinata breaking. She is totally adorable!!

I also met a twelve year old girl and her twenty day old baby. Yeah! Her mom gave her away to a thirty year old man whose she had been living with for the last two years. She just had her healthy baby and is now under foster care. However, she wants to return to live with her "novio". From what they know, she's only attended first grade but flunked out. She says she is happy with him and happy being a stay at home mom.

Stories like these are a reality for many kids in Honduras. =|

Little info on Honduras:

According to CIA World Facts: 59% of the population lives below the poverty line.

From BBC: "Honduran society is rife with economic inequalities. Malnutrition, poor housing and infant diseases are widespread. The country has a youthful population; 50% of Hondurans are under the age of 19.