Chiquimula, GuatemalaMarimba music from a radio did little to lighten the mood as Rosalía García splashed her daughter, Floria, with water from a plastic tub one morning this spring. Puddles formed on the dirt floor. Rosalía flicked her long black ponytail over her shoulder and handed the baby to her mother-in-law, Sebastiana Amador, who pulled socks onto her granddaughter’s feet. The baby’s tiny face reminded Sebastiana of her own daughter. She was eight and weighed 37 pounds when she died four years ago. 

Now it was time to seek help for Floria. Visitors to the family’s home had remarked on the girl’s stunted size. At nine months she looked half her age. They urged Rosalía to take her baby to a government