Hector

Through this past month we have had an unexpected baby that we have taken on. His name is Hector Daniel. He is four months old and just over five pounds. He was discovered at a church at Yerbos Buenas. The baby was suffering from severe malnutrition and wouldn’t last much longer.

A few days went by and Jenni and Anita went and saw the baby. The next day the family brought the baby boy to our house at km.38 where Jenni and Laura took him to a hospital in Pucallpa. He was admitted just under five pounds with sever malnutrition and infection. His arms and legs had no fat; his cheeks were sunken in as well as his stomach. His eyes wandered around aimlessly and he had no idea how to suck a bottle, how to hold a finger, or even how to smile.

The Mother, Sandra, had delivered Hector at seven and a half months because of complications. After Hector was born she had no milk to breast-feed and no money to buy powdered milk. The family resulted in giving the baby cows milk, rice powder water, or flour water. Surprisingly the baby lasted even three months before he was discovered.

Hector was released from the hospital having been cured of his malnutrition and infections. He has learned how to focus his eyes, suck a bottle, move his arms and legs, cry, and even smile. All of which he did very little of before. After about a week of being out Jenni discovered that he was having trouble breathing and he was admitted to the hospital with pneumonia.

He is now out of the hospital again but is still having problems that are caused by unknown reasons. The mother has had many tests that we are waiting for their results as well as the baby. We pray that the tests lead us to an end to the sickness with this precious baby boy.

This was a letter that I started writing about a month ago and many things have happened since then. This was the big turning point of Hectors life and the life of his family…

I think it was a Monday morning but the day is not important. I had come in early that day to get some stuff in town and also pick up the lab results of Sandra. I headed to the hospital and the results weren’t there. They told me I had to go talk to the lab accompanies by the counselor so I headed over there and she went and got the results for me. She came out with a blank look on her face then told me the results. The results came pack positive for HIV. I was a extremely shocked because I didn’t even know that those were the results I was picking up. I walked out of the hospital and headed back to the hostel. The whole time just thinking that ok it’s a false positive. There is no way it could be right. I got back to the hostel and looked up online to see how accurate the tests were. 95% correct. Well that’s pretty high but it could still be false.

About twenty minutes later Jenni walked with a distressed look on her face. I told her the results of Sandra. As she bit her lip looking at Hector she looked up at me and told me that she just picked up Hectors results and they came back positive with HIV. I sat there a little stunned and shocked. Sandra and baby Hector were both HIV positive.
It kinda went down hill from there. Hector got worse with breathing and eating. I brought the rest of the family in for testing and their two little boys came back negative but Daddy Hector came back positive. Hector was still pretty bad, he was getting oxygen treatments which helped relax him and give him the oxygen that he couldn’t bring in himself.

I went with Jenni late one night to the pediatrics doctor which was kind of the finalization of the whole situation. He said that Hector would slowly be able to breath less and less and gave three days and no more than a week of life. Yes I was still praying for a miracle and I even pray now that God will take away his sickness all together. As we walked back to the Hostel all I could think about is how unfair it is for this little child. Why did God lead us to him if he was just going to die. All I could do is stare at the precious little baby.

Days went on and he was still getting oxygen and medication and then things slowly turned around. Hector started breathing better. He started eating better. He still needs his medication, and be put on the mask every once in a while, but he is getting better. He is back up to eating 3-4 ounces. He has his energy back. He is smiling again and most of all he screams and screams when you don’t feed him right when he yells. He has so much strength again it is amazing.

I don’t know what happened to those three days of life that Hector but God has multiplied them. Our prayers still go up to God asking for a life long miracle for Hector and that His strength grows daily in this child

Nicknames (or names he is called)

*Precious

*Handsom

*Sweety

*Fella

*Critter

*Honey

*Gordito

*Pumpkin

*Puggy