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Hefei
Childrens Welfare Center
Hefei, Anhui Province, China
"A Visit
To A Village Near Hefei"
 Scene
9. Aunt Wang's house. - Aunt Wang is fostering a little girl.
A young girl is sitting on a chamber pot, used as a toilet for young children.
Aunt Wang and her daughter are sitting on either side of the girl.
The do not seem to be bothered by this unexpected visit.
The girl is moved to a small chair without arms and is able to sit by
herself. Aunt Wang shows us the little one's foster certificate.
This girl has been with Aunt Wang since May of this year when she
turned four.
Scene 10. Conversation between two aunts.
Aunt Yang: "Look at your little girl, look at her round little face and
chubby hands. My boy is too thin, although he is much better than
when he first came."
Aunt Wang: "Your baby eats what ever you give him. My baby is not
a very good eater. Look at her." (The little girl is eating a rice
bar - she sniffs the bar then takes a bite, sniffs again and takes another
mouthful.)
Aunt Yang: "You are right. My baby knows everything. He can
feed himself. He knows me. He laughs although he doesn't talk
yet. He knows one, two, three, in his mind."
"It is not easy getting a foster child these days. A lot of people
are waiting for a child."
Aunt Wang: "There are not that many children available these days."
Aunt Wang's daughter: "My mother has been looking after children for over
20 years. I couldn't go to school until I was 9 years old because
I had to help my mother take care of the younger children. How many
brothers and sisters do I have? There is my older brother and me".
An old man, Uncle Sun, walks in and quietly sits by the table.
Aunt Yang: "How is your baby doing?"
Uncle Sun: "Do you want to come over and see her?"
Aunt Yang: "Let's go see your baby".
Scene 12. Walking to Uncle Sun's House
We walk through the living room of someone's new house that is under construction.
Three men are working at a well site. Thick yellow water is
shooting out of a pipe and splashing every where. There a many trees
in front of Uncle Sun's house and the cicadas are singing so loudly that
they even cover the sound of the water splashing.
Scene 13. Uncle Sun's House.
Uncle's granddaughter unlocks the double doors to the house from the inside
when she hears the old man's call. Three children are playing on
a bamboo bed in the living room. There are two bedrooms to one side
of the living room. The Suns have doors on the bedrooms and screened
windows so they don't need mosquito netting.
Aunt Sun is busy in the backyard but carries in a young baby at Uncle
Sun's request. The little girl is chubby and bare. Her dark
thick hair outlines her pink face. She stares at whoever is holding
her and smiles when she is touched. Aunt Sun wants to get clothes
for the little girl but is told it is just too hot for clothes. Her
two grandsons have their shirts off. The little girl pees on the floor.
Aunt Sun is embarrassed and hurries to find a cloth to clean up
the puddle.
Aunt Yang: "What do you feed our baby? She is growing so well."
Aunt Sun: "The little thing was not like this when she first came. She
felt like nothing in my hands when I bathed her. We weighed her.
Do you know how much she weighed when I received her in March? Only
5.5 pounds! She is now over 13 pounds. I have nothing to do
all day but take care of her. I never let her get a rash or even
a single mosquito bite."
Continued...
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