Missing child: Hope still survives

May 3 marked the fifteenth anniversary of British toddler Madeleine McCann’s disappearance from a Portuguese resort. Her parents, both physicians, had left 3-year Maddy and her 2-year old twin siblings alone in their room, while they dined at a nearby restaurant with friends.

The subsequent missing person search was, and remains, the largest in history.

As it has every year for a decade and a half, the McCann saga is again generating global headlines. Of particular note this year is that Portuguese police recently announced a suspect in the case — a critical development given that the 15-year statute of limitations was on the brink of expiring.

Over the years, the McCanns have been the recipient of both empathy and vitriol for two reasons: 1) losing a child is an unimaginable tragedy that never stops haunting, 2) it was a situation that, had the parents made different decisions, may have been avoided altogether.

In that light, consider the following:

Many cannot understand how anyone, especially physicians, could leave three children — with a combined age of seven — alone in a groundfloor apartment. Despite their financial resources, the McCanns chose not to bring a nanny. Instead, the children were on their own, which led to troubling questions: Without an adult/babysitter in the room, what would the children do in case of fire? What if a child fell from bed, suffering a severe injury? What if the children awakened and hurt themselves playing with dangerous items in the apartment — medicines, kitchenware, etc.? And, obviously, what measure of safety was there if someone entered the room either for assault or kidnapping purposes?

In the aftermath of Madeleine’s disappearance, Gerry and Kate McCann have lived a roller coaster existence. They went from being official suspects (an allegation later withdrawn by Portuguese authorities) to becoming international figures who met with pope, visited the White House, wrote popular blogs, and were featured on television programs around the world. Such activities, while useful in keeping Madeleine’s story front-and-center, also resulted in some criticism. After all, the odds of her being in America were slim, leading some to question the trip to the U.S. when that time might have been better spent searching for Madeleine in likelier places.

2) After 15 years, any evidence at the crime scene is obviously gone, leaving the investigation of leads — be they hot or cold — as the best chance to find the truth. The McCanns, to their credit, have never given up. Through fundraising and public relations efforts, Maddy’s story continues to generate interest, giving hope that she may yet be found. After all, she would not be the first abducted person to be discovered alive after many years. And it is just that — hope — that keeps parents going.

Most parents in the McCanns’ situation would make the attempt to return to a “normal” life by tending to their family, working, and engaging in daily routines. But there is perhaps nothing worse — nothing — than losing a child through disappearance, for it is a nightmare from which there is no awakening. There is no closure, no end point, no finale. Instead, life is dominated by “what ifs” and a thousand other questions that cannot be answered.

Clearly, finding Madeleine alive would be the miracle of the century. Barring that, discovering her fate, while unbearable, would at least close the circle for the McCanns, and all involved in the search. But there is something else to consider — a silver lining, if it can be described as such.

When a tragedy occurs, there is tremendous anguish. But there is something else: a teachable moment, replete with lessons that can help avoid the same fate in the future.

After watching the Madeleine McCann story play out for 15 years, if just one parent who was going to quickly run into the store while the baby was outside in the stroller, or who was going to leave the child in the car for just a second while grabbing the takeout order, decided not to do so, then Maddy’s disappearance was not entirely in vain. That may not provide much comfort to the McCanns, but if even one life was saved, then the world is a better place.

Here’s hoping that prayers, police work and long-overdue luck can bring Madeleine McCann home, once and for all.