Another child wrote this letter to us, which Echo was nice enough to translate for me. The author says that even though she is about to go into surgery this afternoon, she can already feel our care. She recognizes that we are tired, and she thanks us for bringing smiles to all the kids.This is the kinda thing that just warms my heart. No one asked her to write this. We gave her paper and crayons to dull the boredom of waiting, because we felt bad that she had to wait all day for surgery. She could've written or drawn anything she wanted. The fact that she chose to use her paper to thank us really means the world to us. One ugly fact of Interplast life is that even though we are helping change these kids' lives, surgery and recovery is usually scary, uncomfortable and weird for the kids. Many children cry in the post-operative care unit due to their hunger from not eating all day (so there won't be complications under anesthesia) and their recently completed facial reconstruction surgery. We know in our hearts that the children will be grateful later on in life, but anyone who's ever been in a pediatrician's office knows crying and screaming are the norm with pediatric surgery. We tell ourselves that the kids are grateful, but we don't often hear it from them (the parents, however, always show their deep gratitude). So to hear the children themselves thank us is really meaningful. Even though we change the lives of eight to twelve patients per day, hearing just one little thank you takes our breath away. Less