Heru (below, with his mother) is only four years old but has already undergone surgery thrice.
In 2005, the then eight- month-old boy was badly
burnt when his sibling overturned a kerosene lamp at a camp for internally displaced persons that they were staying in, setting his cot ablaze.
He was sent to Singapore and went through two months of treatment at the Singapore General Hospital's burns unit and the KK Women's and Children's Hospital.
Two weeks ago, The Sunday Times visited the family at their simply furnished, single-storey house in Meulaboh.
Heru, who has visible burn marks on his forehead, cheeks and nose, was shy, hiding behind his mother throughout the interview.
Madam Erlina, 42, said that her son had to undergo two more operations since his return from Singapore. Both - one to lighten facial scars and the other to uncurl the fingers of his left hand - took place in Medan. Heru's left hand had been clenched since the accident, a symptom common among burn victims.
The operations were arranged by Australian aid worker Marion Van Der Beck, who went out of her way to send Heru here. In Singapore, his bills were paid by the Singapore Red Cross.
Now, the only tell-tale signs of the accident are the parched skin on Heru's face and pictures of his recovery lining the walls of the house.
'He asked me why his face is scarred, and if others would make fun of him in school,' said Madam Erlina.
The boy is still eager to join other children in school. But his father, a part-time labourer, cannot afford to buy him uniforms and school materials.
When asked what he wants to be when he grows up, Heru whispered in Bahasa Indonesia: 'A doctor.'
Mavis Toh