The Jerrines and Darlenes

Darlene

The call came from Social Welfare that there were twins, three days old whose mother had died shortly after birth. We were told that they were so young they hadn't even been named yet. Augustine (our administrative assistant) and I left shortly after the call, as we had 2 openings. (A miracle in itself).

We didn't go alone, however. My twin sister and her husband are visiting us and they went along for the rescue. Jerrine was going to be the one holding one of the twins on the return trip to the nursery. Jim would   document with photographs. So off we went.

Jerrine

The family was devastated by the loss of the mother. Two weeks had already passed since mom's death. Baby care was difficult. The grandmother had a can of Lactogen infant formula, but the girls were already showing signs of malnutrition. This is common, as Lactogen is a powder and it gets diluted too much. Enough powder to make the water whitish is all that is used, so it will last longer. This gives the baby fluid, but not enough protein. Both twins were tiny.

The father and village headman were eager for us to take the babies. They were also very grateful. The babies had already been named, but when the family discovered that Jerrine and I were twins they decided to name the girls Jerrine and Darlene after us, as a sign of respect and gratitude. Their given names would become middle names. This is common in Malawi.

Jerrines on left, Darlenes on right

Jerrine and I were thrilled! The first twin was named Jerrine, as Jerrine came first in our family. The second twin is Darlene, who came second like I did. The similarities were striking. We each held our respective namesake on the bumpy, dusty trip back to the nursery.

Jerrine and Darlene are now 3 weeks old and doing well. They are gaining weight and show no signs of any kind of illness. We are thankful that so far, all is well. And we are looking forward to watching the twins grow into healthy happy toddlers.