Helping my four year old daughter wind down last night after a busy day of work, pre-school (for her), bill paying, housework and life, I found myself sitting still with her in her cozy, night -lighted room that smelled sweetly of baby lotion and the soft innocence of little girlhood. The pure tiredness of a happy day at pre-school ending in each others' arms filled us both with simple, profound joy. To think of that physical and emotional connection being taken away is unbearable. I believe that probably all of you reading this who are parents share that opinion. It is universal.
Yet, in some parts of our world, it is common practice for parents to give up their children because their economic or social conditions give them no choice, in their belief system. In India, infants, mostly girls, are abandoned by many families who are too poor to care for them. Babies even are killed at birth by parents or mothers who cannot bear the shame of wedlock, poverty, widowhood or other conditions that are unbearable to them. To help alleviate the deplorable practice of infanticide, the Indian government has established "cradle centers," where family members or parents can safely and with anonymity leave their children. From there, the government gives the babies to local organizations for care.
Many of Anantha Ashram's young residents of its Home for Abandoned Children come from these government cradle centers. One baby was brought to us just a few weeks ago - she was born at the end of January to a poor couple in a village called Periyampatti near Palacode. Her picture appears here. The parents surrendered the child since she was the third female child in the family. She is so tiny and now that she's in the care of Anantha Ashram, she will join "brothers and sisters" in receiving loving care and the chance to be adopted into an appopriate Indian family.
Over the years, Anantha Ashram has helped more than 400 children like this tiny girl. We are growing the programs allowing for their medical care, education and even an endowment for higher education - we truly raise them as our own children.
Note on costs: The Children’s Home needs about $42,000 US dollars to operate every year, excluding medical care.
Note about author: Jaya K. Bohlmann is on the Board of Directors for both Anantha Ashram in Hosur, India and CUP International, a nonprofit based in Maryland that raises money and awareness for Anantha Ashram.
