A MOTHER’S JOURNEY OF HOPE

PUNAKHA, BHUTAN | FEBURARY 2019

Tshering is the youngest of three siblings, and the only one born with a bilateral cleft lip. While her older brother and sister, aged 11 and 9, attend school in Trongsa Dzongkhag in central Bhutan, Tshering stayed home with her mother, waiting for a chance that could change her life.

When her mother heard the announcement of a Smile Asia mission, she wasted no time. Determined to help her daughter, she made the long and exhausting eight-hour bus journey to Punakha District Hospital. Her husband, the family’s sole breadwinner, could not take leave from his construction job, leaving her to carry the responsibility on her own.

Smiley Tshering undergoing a final medical check from Plastic Surgeon Dr Moe Thuzar before entering the operating theatre

The journey was not easy, but her mother’s resolve never wavered. She shared that Tshering often struggled with eating because of her cleft, and she wished with all her heart that surgery could bring her daughter a more normal life.

That wish was fulfilled. When Tshering’s mother saw her after the successful surgery, she was overwhelmed with emotion. She thanked the Smile Asia team profusely for giving her daughter a new beginning. For her, the long journey and the sacrifice were worth every moment — because Tshering now has the chance to grow up with confidence, health, and a beautiful smile.

Before and after: In under an hour, a bilateral cleft lip surgery delivers an extraordinary transformation