A FEW DAYS TO MAKE A LIFETIME OF DIFFERENCE
She was born without her right ear, a condition termed microtia. She described her feelings of shame that she brought to her family because she was born different. She told the audience that she endured the pain of the surgeries, year after year, for a total of four, so that her parents would be proud of her again.
In Zimbabwe, I met families who would travel for 40 hours by bus, for medical care that most of us could find at any hospital in town. In the US a cleft lip is typically repaired at the age of 10 weeks. In Harare I spoke to a 25 year old gentleman who asked that his lip be made normal so that he could find a wife and marry.
Traveling through the Philippines, I met teenagers with cleft deformities. A few had dropped out of school because they were teased relentlessly. Worse yet, I met a mother who found her adopted daughter abandoned in a rubbish bin because she was born with a cleft lip”.
All of these children were born with congenital conditions that are correctable with a little bit of effort and generosity. Please visit the following organizations for more information:
