Blanket Drop

One night I went with the group when they did a blanket drop at Hospital Escuela.  I have written about a blanket drop, but I had never done one before.  I have been to Hospital Escuela many times, but never at night.  It was an eye-opening experience. 

Marc had purchased around 200 blankets.  Everyone was suppose to have 4 blankets, but some only had one or two.  As we pulled into the parking lot, there were people sleeping on the steps.  People who have sick children cannot stay in the rooms with their children.  They sleep wherever they can find a place.  Some sleep in the halls and, others, sleep outside.

I gave my first blanket away as soon as I got out of the car.  A lady walked up to me.  She needed a lot more than a blanket.  Her shoes were almost soleless and her dress was in tatters. 

Marc divided the group into smaller groups.  One group headed toward the steps to give blankets to those sleeping there.  Then they were to go inside to the children's wards where surely there would be many parents sleeping, or trying to sleep, on the floor.  The other group went to the emergency room.  I went to the emergency room.

No one should ever complain about having to wait a long time in the emergency room again.  I don' think we know what a long time is.

The er was packed and people were waiting outside.  We knew some people would be waiting all night and into the next day.  I walked in and saw a young lady sitting in one of the few chairs.  She was doubled over.  I could not tell if she was praying or crying.  I walked over to her and draped my second blanket around her shoulders.  She was obviously crying.  Maybe praying, too. 

I was going to wait on the others, but someone began to vomit.  No one, not a nurse, not an aide, no one moved to clean it up.  Since many of the group were outside giving blankets to people out there, I made a hasty path to the door. 

The 200 people that received the much needed blankets were appreciative.  We were finished in 15 minutes or less.  And, it was not even a drop in a bucket of the amount of blankets we could have given.  It was so sad to see such a large number of people tired and probably hungry and cold and sleeping or waiting everywhere.