Thursday 19 June 2014

Heartbreak for our family


It is with overwhelming sorrow we bring you sad news that our beautiful baby Athman died suddenly yesterday.
He had been fine, and the morning started as it always does with the aunties getting him up as usual.
He enjoyed his breakfast, and then he was out in the baby banda with  the other tinies where he was laughing and smiling while aunties did his exercises with him. 
Fifteen month old Athman was his happy self, enjoying the love and attention of his daily routine.
He showed no signs of any sickness or distress.
Shortly afterwards, when aunties took him for morning bath, he suddenly went into a spasm, his eyes started rolling back and they knew something was very seriously wrong.
He was rushed to Mama's doctor,  Dr Arulla , who fought to save him but he was unable to so.
Mama, Papa and all our family are heartbroken, as we know you will be.
Mama held a  kidz club so that she could tell all the family together and tells me everyone is very subdued and quiet, but they are thinking about their beautiful brother and celebrating his special place in their lives.  Every adult and every child will have their own memory of Athman to cherish and keep in their heart.
His sister Sudi and brother Abu and all the children have the love and support their wonderful Mama and Papa, Uncle BIlly, Auntie Rose and all the aunties and uncles and we know that adults and children alike will support each other.
Our only consolation is that we made our Athman's all-to-brief life the best that it could be.
That he survived his premature birth, in which his mum and twin died, is a miracle in itself, he was such a poorly, malnourished, little dot when we brought him home to the Happy House with Sudi and Abu the odds were stacked against him from the beginning.
We sourced all the best medical expertise available to us, sparing no expense,  to try to establish why his development was delayed, but no doctor could come up with any answer so we did what we always do and gave him the best of care, all our love and held on to the believe that he would eventually catch up.
We know you, our family in the wider world, will share our sadness.
Uncle Isaac went out to the remote village where his grandmother lives to break the news, and Athman's father is being informed. They, too, have our support.
We try so hard to work our magic on every child who comes to us, but sometimes there is a greater plan.
Now our much loved Athman is with his Mama and his twin and heaven has a Happy House angel.