Thursday 17 November 2016

Dads and Daughters

One of my roles here is being involved in the milk program. Here, babies are brought in from the community by a concerned family member, often the mother, looking for assistance with feeding their child. For either medical or social reasons, the mother is not able to breastfeed. I work with the Mozambican nurses to determine the nutritional needs of the baby. In most cases it is the mother who brings in her baby. At times it is an aunt, grandmother, or female neighbour. On the rare occasion a father or uncle will bring in their baby. You can read one such story of a concerned uncle here. A few weeks ago we had one of these rare moments. A concerned father brought his newly born two week old daughter. She was tiny and had not eaten for almost 24 hours. Her mother was in hospital severely ill. You could see the concern this father had for his daughter. Her weight which had been healthy two weeks earlier at her birth, was already beginning to show the signs of nutritional neglect. Our numbers on the program were already at the max but we could not turn this little one away. We gladly accepted her and she and her father have since been coming consistently. Even though it has only been a few weeks, you can already see the improvement in her weight as it steadily climbs upward. You can see the tenderness that this father has for his daughter. In a culture that does not value women as equal, it is heartwarming to see that to some fathers, daughters are treasures.

My own Dad treasures the three daughters that he has. We have a picture of my dad with us three girls when we were young, wrapped in his arms after a Sunday afternoon hike. Then there is the picture of me, at two years old, assisting my dad in building the backyard shed. Not to mention the countless times he has taken us on canoe adventures, remained calm teaching us how to drive (which also includes how to drive out of the ditch), or the little things like bringing us home a surprise gift at the end of his busy work day or his sparkling eyes when we come home for a visit. All these things speak to the love which he has for us, his daughters.

I am also reminded of stories from the bible that show the value and esteem of women. Like the story where the five daughters of an Israelite man are given the same right as the Israelite men to own land so that their father's name is not forgotten (Numbers 27). Or how in Nehemiah it includes in the list of workers the father and his daughters who helped to build the wall (Nehemiah 3:12). And then there is Jesus, who affirmed women and taught them, who gave his life for them along with their male counterparts, who was sent by the Father who loves His daughters, in order to be reconciled to them. They are included in the gift of salvation. They are included, they are not less than. They are treasures to their Father. They are loved. They are valued. They are chosen.