Who knows what they are doing when they first start out? Like any young parents, we had no idea what we were taking on when we began the Latika Roy Foundation. All we knew was that the baby was ours and that she was looking at us. No escape.

Not that we were looking for one. Not us! We thought we could do whatever was needed. We thought it would be simple.

We had no idea.

Years have passed (20) and many babies, many families have come and gone.

Every family has its hopes and dreams. Every baby arrives with promise and expectation. We step in when the dreams don’t meet the reality, when the baby’s promise doesn’t match the family’s expectations.

It’s a tough call.

Because in secret, every family still believes that their baby is the special one. Their baby is the one who will beat the odds.

Reality is meaningless. Love will conquer all.

What I saw at Chhota Gubbara today astonished me. The love and skill of these parents was staggering. Amazing. Inspiring. I met an infant this morning who was born with no ears. A 3-month old so tiny he would have been shocking as a newborn. Parents with no education, no fancy jobs, often no source of income. But their babies knew, unerringly, whom to look to for every single thing:

It wasn’t any of us – skilled as we are.

All the eye contact, all the connection! It was for their Moms and Dads.

Over and over and over again, we see babies reaching out to their parents. Everything we know, everything we experience, everything we see tells us the same thing: children are most at home in their families. Families are our strength. We need to support parents. We need to help mothers and fathers do their best for their children.

It should be easy. It should be what all of us do. Help parents to do what they are yearning to do anyway.

Let’s make it happen. Let’s be there for parents.