Mir's Message of Hope

When Nur’s mother, Mir, discovered her son had a cleft, her blood pressure plummeted. She had a nervous breakdown. The medical team had to give her an oxygen mask.

Will he ever be able to call me mother? Will I ever be able to hear him talk?

“The doctors kept telling me that it would be fine, that there is a lot of treatment for clefts. But as a mother, how can I stop worrying about my own child?”

Mir’s doctors directed her to the nearby Comilla Trauma Center, where, thanks to Smile Train, Nur could receive cleft care 100% free. Mir and her husband, Munir, brought him before he was even a month old. The cleft team told them to return in six months, when Nur would be old enough for cleft surgery.

Over the next half year, Mir worked tirelessly to ensure Nur stayed well nourished so that would be healthy and ready for his procedure. She worked so hard she made herself sick.

“I kept waking day and night to make sure that he could eat properly,” she says.

At last, the day of Nur’s surgery arrived. Mir’s large family knew she would be nervous, so they all came to spend the day with her and offer love and support — Munir and his parents, her sister and brother-in-law.

In the waiting room at Comilla, Mir watched as five children entered and exited surgery before Nur. She saw that they were all fine.

“That gave me strength,” she says.

Finally, the doctors called Nur into surgery. Mir waited anxiously. At last, her baby boy emerged once again — with a new smile!

“I cannot express in words how precious it was to hold him then. It felt like he was reborn,” she says.

Today, Nur is a happy, healthy nine-year-old. He likes riding his bike, playing soccer, and spending time with his friends. He is doing well in school.

“I cannot express my gratitude to Comilla Trauma Center and the whole team at Smile Train. I hope and pray that, just as Smile Train brought smiles to me and my child, they keep doing their good work around the world for everyone,” Mir says.

“I also share this message with everyone in my community — if there is a boy or girl born with a cleft, go to Comilla Trauma Center. You will get treatment there. I always tell mothers, be hopeful, be patient, and keep faith. There will be angels sent by God. You will find a solution for your child.”