Musings 
No Comments “Yes, please fix my child!”
“Yes, please fix my child!”
This was the emotional plea from Khun Lek, the young Thai mother speaking in her language.
For many weeks my team and I had sought to entreat Thai mothers of children with clefts and other facial deformities to allow Operation Smile bring their international doctors to surgically repair these birth defects. Most Thai people are practicing Buddhists. A tenet of their beliefs is that ‘where and to what circumstances’ one is born back into is a reflection of the ‘good and bad’ deeds done in previous lives. This is ‘karma’.
The damaged faces of their children often prevented healthy eating leading to under-development and other maladies. They were also many hardships and embarrassments – to child and family. Often the disfigured children were ‘hidden away’ and not allowed to go to school. As painful as this was for child and mother their beliefs suggested that the deformity was retribution for past lives’ mistakes.
Through a translator I offered another interpretation. I suggested that bringing all the international surgeons and health professionals to repair her child was evidence that past misdeeds had been erased and that a new karmic experience was being offered. The Thai mother’s eyes grew big and as tears flowed she nodded in prayerful appreciation and acknowledgement. Lek began to receive the blessings for her family and child as she imagined her child’s face repaired. The mother was overwhelmed with emotion from thoughts of her child recovering health, going to school, and leading a productive life.
In following weeks Operation Smile Thailand arranged the logistics and financial support bringing an international medical team to northern Thailand to conduct a weeklong surgical mission. During this week over 90 children had facial birth defects and other burn injuries repaired by their plastic surgeons. Khun Lek’s son was one of them.
The ‘karmic journey’ of all the Operation Smile’s volunteers, medical professionals and patrons was also proceeding ‘making miracles, one smile at a time’.
