Bill Donovan is a stay-at-home accountant, a hobbyist, and a vegetarian, but it all comes second to lovingly hiding his only son from an ugly reflection.
“It was hard at first, but you get used to it,” remarked Donovan, referring to the many subtle tasks he’s taken on as a single-dad with a facially-troubled child. “When I finally realized that Isaac’s face would never be like the other boys, I knew I was going to have to make some sacrifices.”
With his son’s self-esteem in mind, Donovan has made it his duty to routinely cover or remove mirrors, misplace picture frames, destroy cameras, and even tarnish random metals if there’s a chance his son’s image might appear in it. “Once Isaac woke up in the night, went downstairs, and saw himself in the side of the kettle. It took weeks for me to convince him that a Steve Buscemi puke-monster wasn’t going to get him in the night. We now boil our water over a log-fire.”
Exposed to ugly children in his youth, Donovan is also familiar with the challenges Isaac faces, and fears for his son’s future. “If I could have cut that face off years ago and worn it for him, I would have. But his condition was so severe, even cosmetic surgery wasn’t an option. I’ve been doing the only things that a good father can,” lamented Donovan as he carefully disturbed the bathwater intended for his son. “A reflection is just a bully he can’t fight.”
Children’s services have been made aware of the unique situation, and have described Bill Donovan’s parental choices as “socially abnormal,” “unhealthy,” and “unsafe log-fire usage.” However, in Donovan’s eyes, he’s still doing his son a favour: “Not every duck was meant to be a swan, and not every kid was meant to have a face. He’s got what he’s got, and love means doing whatever it takes to let him swan it up for a while.”
