This story reveals what it truly means to care — not the easy kind, but the kind that demands everything and never gives up. It’s about real people holding on through the darkest nights, for their families and their futures.
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Maria, 20, fled Sudan with her nine-month-old daughter, Imtias. For days, she walked and ran through bombs, fires, and gunshots, carrying her baby whenever she could. A thin cloth — her only possession — held Imtias tightly on Maria’s weakened body.
“I am incredibly thirsty,” Maria says, repositioning Imtias on her hip. “Two days ago was the last time I had water to drink. Six days ago, the last time I ate.” Severe dehydration began with a dry mouth and headache, followed by cracked, parched lips. Her breathing grew shallow, dizziness set in, and exhaustion weighed heavily on her. Her strength waned, movements slowed, and thoughts dulled.
That was when fear took hold, and Maria, with no clear direction, searched for water in the dry wilderness along the Sudan-Chad border. She didn’t know where she was — she just kept running like her neighbors, never stopping.