The Frightened Two-year-old

 

Off the airplane she came wearing a simple light blue dress, pigtails fastened with white ribbons, holding on tightly to the hands of a woman she had met a week ago. Fear was the look on her precious little face. Although she had been born in this country, she was found near her mother's body in the woods of a small city in Panama. How she survived the two nights alone - no one will ever know. Why whoever murdered her mom did not murder the daughter too- we will never know. If she saw how her mother was murdered, we will never know.  Simply because she is only two years old.

The woman holding onto her hand, which she never let go of, works for the Brazilian government located in Panama. Whoever found the girl and the mother's body also found their documents on her that was written that she was born in Sao Paulo. However, her mother, to be more exact her mother and her were escaping and trying to cross the border into the US for a better life perhaps to live the American dream. No one knows the accurate reasons for the young girl cannot say, not that she cannot talk, in fact she speaks Portuguese with a Spanish accent. Perhaps, she is traumatized by what happened.

As they are in the cab riding to the foster home where she will stay until they find her father or her grandparents, who allegedly live in Sao Paulo, the government worker informs the foster mother that is going to stay with her for a few days so that she doesn't feel totally abandoned again twice in the same month. For, in a few days, the hand - that – she – held – tightly - to would be going back to Panama.

What's to become of this young girl's life? Only the future will tell. If they find her father or the alleged father, they will have to do a DNA test to confirm the information and see whether or not he can afford to raise this child as his own; if he wants to; if he doesn’t, they'll ask the grandparents the same thing. If they do not want to raise her or cannot afford to do so, then she will be put up for adoption. All of this could have traumatized this little two-year-old. So much pain and suffering at such an early age. One thing is for sure, all of this will make her stronger and survive the times.

Written: December 6, 2024

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