Imagery: Singles: Father bursts into tears over missing child

1/25/2005 -- Banda Aceh, Indonesia -- Mohammad Budi Permana breaks down while holding a baby girl who is from his village. Permana lost his fifteen-month-old daughter, Anya, in the tsunami and has not yet given up hope of finding her, alive or dead. He asked to hold the child (Edi Mulfi) to test himself, he says. "I though I could be the strong man," he later said. While he was holding Mulfi, he cried out "I remember my daughter!" and burst into tears. He said he previously managed to keep his emotions under control and his mind occupied in his search, but when he held the child, he lost control. He cried for a long time (20 minutes in the car); when he was composed, he brushed an eyelash that had fallen onto his left cheek, remarking, "In Indonesia, when an eyelash falls, it means someone misses you." He added, "If [it falls on the] left, it means she is far...if it falls on the right, it means she is close." He concluded, "That means my child is alive. Somewhere." Photo by Dina Rudick, Globe Staff Could accompany story about reuniting children and parents through DNA testing, emotional fallout and psychological issues.