On April 11, 2009, my husband and I arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to bring home our daughter, Selah, whose first birthday happened to be the same day. Malnourished and showing noticable signs of rickets, she could’ve easily been mistaken for a four-month old. She was unable to hold her own bottle, eat from a spoon, or sit up on her own.

Her eyes said it all.

selah addis hotel

By her second birthday, she was walking. By her third birthday, she was running and climbing.

Today she is every bit her age, and her eyes are still speaking for her.

selah 4

selah 5

tivoli village potrait