The importance of a smile
The first Friday of October is World Smile Day. A simple, sincere gesture that comes straight from the heart. Hard to hold back, easy and instant to understand.
The spontaneity of a smile leads us to take it almost for granted, but for those born with a facial malformation, such as cleft lip and palate, in low- and middle-income countries, a smile can also conceal hardships and worries, such as being able to eat properly or being accepted by the community in which they live.
Bluon cares deeply about protecting children and safeguarding their well-being and peace of mind. That is why, for some time now, we have chosen to support Fondazione Operation Smile Italia ETS and to help bring about happy endings like the one we are about to tell you. For over 40 years, Operation Smile has been committed to providing free medical and surgical care to children around the world who are born with cleft lip and palate.
The road to a smile
Ethan's story begins unexpectedly after only 7 months of his mother Dayrim's pregnancy. To the worries of this premature birth was added the discovery of something the prenatal scans had not revealed: the baby has a cleft lip and palate, a condition that involves a cleft of the upper lip and palate.
Ethan's most pressing issue, however, concerns his lungs, which are still too underdeveloped at the time of his arrival: to help him breathe, 2 months in the paediatric intensive care unit will be needed. During this time Ethan grows steadily healthier and stronger, and his mother Dayrim's hope is that her little one can be operated on as soon as possible to treat the cleft lip and palate.
Unfortunately, however, the operation at the hospital in Guatemala City is postponed four times over 11 months. Dayrim is exhausted, and Ethan has by now spent most of his life in hospitals, surrounded by doctors and machines.
Everything changes when mother Dayrim hears the story of one of her neighbours, whose son, born with a cleft lip and palate, had been able to access the free surgery that changed their lives, precisely thanks to Operation Smile. A moment of great empathy and closeness rekindles Dayrim's hope.
Once she has contacted Operation Smile Guatemala, Dayrim takes her little boy to a local clinic: at last, on the fifth attempt, she meets no more obstacles! Ethan is soon operated on, and can now smile at his bright future!
