I met a man in a park who had a dog I was interested in and we got to talking about dogs, about Ecuador, where he had worked, and where I have been part of a dog rescue project, and finally, about Zimbabwe.
His name is Stephen Clawson and he has also worked in Zimbabwe, where his father, Dr. Joseph Clawson donates much of his time performing restorative surgeries for children with cleft lips and cleft palates. The charity he volunteers for, Operation of Hope, has performed hundreds of operations on severly deformed children.
As we stood in the park and dogs romped around us, Stephen told me a story you might appreciate, about a boy named Beloved.
Actually, the video tells the story quite well. It begins like this: a boy was playing near his grandmother's house in this war-torn land. He saw a small metal box that resembled a transistor radio, and as is the custom with such radios, children place them in their mouths to improve reception. But this was no radio. It was a landmine.
What more can be said? Can you imagine living the life that Beloved has? His story takes us from the ghastly horror of landmines to the miracle of compassion of the workers in this organization, using the highest scientific skills to at least partly restore what the insanity of warfare took away.
Stephen told me that Beloved's story has attracted support from around the globe, including a generous gift from actor Hugh Jackman, a seven page spread in People Magazine and the formidable publicity power of Oprah Winfrey. Operation of Hope undoubtedly will have more of such stories with happy endings to tell in the future.