The hidden confraternity of parents with kids with disabilities

Last week after Mass, the man who had been sitting in the pew next to our family came up to my husband and Lucy and said, "This is the little girl whose smile can light up the entire church!" He introduced himself to us, and in the course of the conversation, this kindly gentleman revealed that he had lost a beloved 3 year old daughter to a rare chromosomal disorder. He was touched because there was something in the warmth with which Lucy had reached out to him for the sign of peace that reminded him strongly of his own daughter. We found ourselves soon chatting like old friends!