A few years ago, a photo of a little black boy and a woman giving him water from a bottle flew around the world. The story behind this photo is heartbreaking.

A helpless baby, barely two years old, was found on the side of the road in one of the Nigerian cities. As it turned out, the parents abandoned the child themselves because of their own superstitions and prejudices. According to local beliefs, it was believed that the family’s misfortunes were the fault of dark forces that often inhabit small children. The boy was left on the road and no one took care of him, the baby was forced to feed only on what compassionate passersby gave him.

Having learned about what had happened, volunteer Anya Ringgren Lovén was simply stunned by the parents’ attitude. She took the boy and took him to the hospital. Anya was afraid that the little one would not even make it to the hospital, he was so weak. However, it seems that fate was on the boy’s side. They managed to save him and nurse him back to health, the little one was named Hope.

Today, 5 years later, Hope lives in a charitable mission founded by Anya and her husband David. In addition to him, there are 75 other children who were abandoned by their parents. Despite some hearing and speech problems, the boy turned out to be very talented.

Hope quickly masters reading and writing, and for his love of creativity, teachers call him “mini-Picasso.” Today, this lively, cheerful child is unrecognizable as the little one that Anya noticed on the road by chance.

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