Simoni, Simoni, cheesy macaroni

So yesterday was a pretty good day, until the end. My little man Simoni, composer and performer of the Emily song, had seemed fine all day, but suffered a seizure around 6pm, just before I was meant to be heading home for the night. We rushed him to the hospital (THIS is why it's great to be 200 meters away), where they discovered he had suddenly developed a very high fever, which later came back as malarial. This was actually a relief, given his mother's drug use during pregnancy, his history of meningitis, and his troubles walking - we were worried it was symptomatic of a more serious underlying neurological problem. As it is, it appears to have been brought on by the fever, and hopefully is not indicative of epilepsy, although we will of course keep a close eye on him. He has been very, very brave through what is a very scary experience for a three year ol - possibly even worse when another child was wheeled in, screaming and bleeding, after a motorcycle accident - a frequent form of transportation here because it's cheaper than taxis. That kid also appears to be ok, superficial head injuries, although again they are keeping a close eye. 

Listening to music while he's on the drip

Balancing what is, according to him, a bucket of water on his head, "like the mamas do"

After much effort, I got a laugh with the "Simoni, Simoni, cheesy macaroni" song. Success!

 The doctors predict he will be fine, although he will be in the hospital for a few days so they can keep a close eye on him and continue to administer IV fluids and medication, which he is NOT thrilled about. He is very upset that he can't come back to the orphanage and help with the chickens, so I promised him he can help every day for a week when he gets out of the hospital! Simple pleasures are the best pleasures.

Thank you to those who have already stepped up - if you want to help us keep better track of the kids' health and the hospital to be better prepared to help, please consider the wish list.