Book excerpt: Preface by Paola Severini Melograni Translation into English by Ferruccio Bruno I always thought about my son as a delicate flower that needs to be loved, protected and cared for, and that's what I intend to do as long as I'm breathing. But I also know this is not enough. A flower, tenacious as it may be, could hardly survive on its own. The wind will batter it, dispersing its petals. The heat will wither it and the chill of the night will freeze-burn it. Eventually, weed will choke it out. If, on the other hand, it grows surrounded by other flowers, different in form and colours, its beauty and fragrance would be enhanced by their presence. Not only that; its flower friends will form a barrier around it, preventing weeds and inclemencies from withering it. That's the purpose of this book: to encourage those who, like me, have the future of these “special children” at heart, so that a flowerbed of solidarity may blossom around them, helping them to face the hardest challenges of life.