September is Craniofacial Acceptance Month, and I asked Philip what that meant to him. His response was that everyone deserves respect and dignity, no matter what they look like. It isn't easy to walk around with a facial birth defect, with scars on your face, or with prosthetics on your face. How many people do that on a daily basis all over the world?
They face rejection. It may start at home, or at school, with rejection from family members, rejection from peers. The consistency of rejection is humiliating and degrading, especially to the soul of an individual.
I remember a young man named Ernest that we met in Zimbabwe. He was born with a cleft lip, and his village named him "split lip." Imagine being called Split Lip for sixteen years of your life. "Split Lip, go gather the firewood. Split Lip come to the chalkboard and solve this problem."
Ernest never deserved to be degraded. He deserves acceptance and love, just as every single individual on earth.
I hope that you will also stand up and be a voice for these children, who do not have a voice. Another opportunity that you have to support them is at the 5Krun4love on Saturday, September 8, 2018. Register today at www.5krun4love.com!! Let's work together to share love and acceptance for each child born with facial birth defects.