Vibol's story
Today I saw my little friend Vibol at the hospital. He's one of the sweetest little boys I know. I love his shy smile and his big eyes.
2 years ago when we met him his was one of the sadder stories we had come across. The past 2 years have been beautiful though and today he is thriving!
2 years ago he was staying at the hospital. A few months before we met him his mom had died of AIDS complications and his aunt who received custody of he and his sister took them to be tested. His sister's test came back negative, but his was positive and he was a sick little boy. He was hospitalized from a combination of malnutrition and sickness. When we met him he stared with sad little eyes and his aunt had to carry him wherever he needed to go. After starting on his ARV medicine he quickly began to recover.
He got better so quickly that there have been times people in his village have asked his aunt who he is, thinking there is no way the sick little boy survived.
Today his distended stomach is gone and he is vibrant! Many times when we go to visit him he's not home because he's off fishing or at school. He is reading and writing his alphabet in Kindergarten and the teacher is confident he'll do well as he goes to first grade next year. I love watching his aunt interact with him and his sister. She is so kind to them, takes such good care of them and is so proud of their accomplishments.
And how can you not love a smile like his?
2 years ago when we met him his was one of the sadder stories we had come across. The past 2 years have been beautiful though and today he is thriving!
2 years ago he was staying at the hospital. A few months before we met him his mom had died of AIDS complications and his aunt who received custody of he and his sister took them to be tested. His sister's test came back negative, but his was positive and he was a sick little boy. He was hospitalized from a combination of malnutrition and sickness. When we met him he stared with sad little eyes and his aunt had to carry him wherever he needed to go. After starting on his ARV medicine he quickly began to recover.
He got better so quickly that there have been times people in his village have asked his aunt who he is, thinking there is no way the sick little boy survived.
Today his distended stomach is gone and he is vibrant! Many times when we go to visit him he's not home because he's off fishing or at school. He is reading and writing his alphabet in Kindergarten and the teacher is confident he'll do well as he goes to first grade next year. I love watching his aunt interact with him and his sister. She is so kind to them, takes such good care of them and is so proud of their accomplishments.
And how can you not love a smile like his?
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