THE EDITOR, Sir:

THIS IS a letter to all the mothers who have a child who the world sees as 'less than perfect' but who is perfect in your eyes.

My son, Camron Jaden, who is three years old, was born with a birth defect.

At 34 weeks of pregnancy, I was told my son had congenital hydrocephalus. My initial response was tears, followed by a chartered path into the unknown since I had never heard the term before. I was given some literature on the subject and in my quest to become further enlightened I promptly turned to the Internet. I quickly learned that my son had excessive fluid on his brain and his ventricles were much too small to drain the fluid ... a normal bodily process.

From then on, I went through the rest of my pregnancy in a daze. I was told that a C-section was mandatory since his head size was beyond normal. I was faced with all of this in an unfamiliar environment, thousands of miles away from my family. I was also informed that approximately three weeks after birth Camron would have to undergo surgery. God became my best friend and prayer my medium of venting.

Camron came into the world on June 27, 2006, not knowing what awaits him. Three weeks after he had his first procedure, a third ventriculostomy, this was just the first in a series of more than seven surgeries. As a single mother, it was the support of my family and friends that pulled me through.

Voice for the unfortunate

Suffice it to say, every day that Camron lives without complications is a day that I am profoundly thankful to God and the team of surgeons who worked on him for many months. He has to live with a shunt (a tube which drains the fluid) for the rest of his life, but I am just thankful for my miracle baby.

My letter is also a voice for the mothers who are poor, do not live near a well-equipped health facility and have to worry daily and pray that their child makes it through the day without having to be rushed to the nearest hospital, which is hundreds of miles away.

I am, etc.,

CAROL POWELL

ceerol20002yahoo.com

Albert Town PO

Trelawny