When you are doing volunteer work in a third world country, you never know what you are going to see next, but what we did not expect was a woman in labor showing up in the back of a taxi.The poor Mexican woman was accompanied by her husband and her doctor.The doctor had been taking care of her in her home and determined that she needed to be in the hospital to make sure everything went well with the delivery. So, here they came.

This poor couple not only showed up in an unusual way, but they looked like they had only been to town a few times before. They were obviously very poor. The Mexican people take pride in their clothing and would wear their best for a trip to town. But, these people had well worn clothing that were clean but threadbare.

During the one hour that they were in the hospital we found out more about them. This was to be the woman's twenty fifth child. She had several sets of twins in the lot. Of those twenty five, sixteen were still alive. No wonder they looked so poor!.When the baby was born, the father pulled out the baby blanket.

We felt pretty bad when we saw the four worn cloths that had been sewn together to make a 'quilt'. Although the baby was obviously loved by her parents, we were distraught at the poverty.They left as they had come. The family in the back and the doctor in the front with the driver.My wife was impressed with their visit to the extent that she held a fund drive and raised enough money to get a real nursery.

Before, the babies had stayed with the mother who was supposed to care for the baby as she recovered.Not only did they get a new nursery, but each baby got a new flannel blanket to take home. The parents were thrilled.

They were not used to such luxury!.We told the people with the Airstream caravan about this experience and how the woman had come to the hospital, delivered a baby and gone home within an hour. With his typical pithy humor, the man said, "She must have coughed.

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By: Ron McCluskey