I have just arrived and the wind has turned my carefully made hair do into a frizzy mess. It’s the first day of school for me but unfortunately I’m a year and two weeks late. You see I’m a transfer student starting a new school at a time when bonds are already formed and the excitement of the summer holidays has already started to wane. My only weapon of choice against the sinking feeling at the base of my stomach that had been my constant companion all morning – my smile. I hide everything behind my dazzling smile.

I always have done and still do. My father always said I could take over the world with my smile. It’s just something I do. It’s not even a conscious effort to smile through my joy, pain, frustration or whatever. Some close to me might say that my smile when I’m hurt is more a grimace than a smile but my point is my ability to control the muscles on my face has never been one that took an enormous effort.

I can still remember the day I was made aware that it was not necessarily the easy option for some. Not because of a choice made not to smile but because physically, it was not possible. I cant explain the utter shock and discomfort I felt. Maybe its because Ive never paid much attention to my smile or the fact that I couldn’t imagine life without it but I couldn’t stop the tears that sprang to my eyes at this discovery.

It seems like such a trivial act but behind each smile is a life story. Such warmth, softness, deceit, honesty, emptiness and much more transpires in a smile. There is a wide range of emotions behind every smile and most of us don’t even consciously do it.

Some years ago, I was on a bus to a location I can no longer remember. I was reading an article of some kind in a magazine that has no particular relevance when there was a note about a young girl born without the ability to smile. The condition is known in medical circles as a cleft lip and palate. A cleft lip is an opening in the upper lip between a newborn’s mouth and nose while a cleft palate is created when the roof of the mouth has a hole in it. Not being a medical expert, I wasn’t sure what that meant till I saw pictures of children from newborn to adolescent with the condition. It was mind-blowing.

What stayed with me while reading about this condition was not how horrific this condition is however, but the fact that it is a condition that can be corrected through surgery. The situation of a child born with this defect is not a hopeless one. Unfortunately, due to poverty, many can not afford the surgery and have to live with this defect. They can not eat or speak properly or go to school but instead live in shame and isolation and with so much pain. The worst part, these children are victims of their poverty not their medical condition.

Through research, I came across Smile Train. This is a charity that was founded in 1999 by two friends to help desperately poor children with cleft by training tens of thousands of medical professionals who provide free equipment and training. The Smile Train aims to empower local doctors, nurses and hospitals to solve the problem themselves allowing the children who need it get the best care and their smile back.

According to their website, Smile Train’s mission is very simple.

1. -To provide free cleft surgery for millions of poor children in developing countries.
2. -To provide free cleft-related training for doctors and medical professionals.

This isnt the only charity however that aims to help children in need who are suffering from this defect.  There are other who are transforming lives.  Operation Smile are also working hard to help those who need it and providing help in areas that cant afford to help themselves.  They are using the resources they have to make a difference and change lives. That is not just admirable, it is inspirational. And it is something we can all be part of also. By clicking on the links above, you can make a donation, read stories of the lives changed and find other ways you could be part of the human experience. We all have different things that move us on a day-to-day basis. For me, this was something that touched my core. I hope you are also moved in some small way to want to at least find out more about how you can be of help to someone else who desperately needs it.