Can I Give You My Heart?

I tried applying to be an organ donor but alas, my age restricts me from doing so. Of course, I don't mind waiting another 2 1/2 months, but when I get my permit in ... holy shit TWO WEEKS!, I can't get the cool 'DONOR' label on my card! :( Oh well, that's life, I guess.

Before I engage further regarding organ donation, I'd like to note that I made my first ever turn in a car today! It was dangerously frightening, I nearly crashed, and I did not like it one bit. I hate driving.

Anyway...


Isn't it beautiful to think that you could save a person's life just by giving them your heart? And you're not just relieving the patient who had been desperately waiting for one, but their family as well. All of a sudden you become their hero, a lifesaver- literally. But the thing is, you can't just give someone your heart. But really, if I could, I would.

Being an organ donor is a beautiful thing. I can only imagine how many people in the world are hanging onto life, simply waiting for an organ just so they can live to wake up the next morning. Then consider how long, on average, it takes for someone to even receive one. With that in consideration, it seems like there are only a handful of organ donors in this world.

I wonder how many organs I can donate without giving up life... Well, I don't need two kidneys, ... ah! According to UNOS, I can donate the following: an entire kidney, a segment of my liver, a lobe of my lung (whatever that means), a portion of my intestines, and a portion of my pancreas. Now isn't that lovely? After reading that, I'm feeling rather skeptical about giving away a portion of my lung or liver, but hey, my kidney's up for grabs!

Samaritan donations are beautiful. Someone somewhere was willing to undergo a procedure and all it takes to resect their organs to give them to a complete stranger so they can have a life. That's it. No strings attached, no bribes, nothing. Just one person giving something away to someone else.

xo
J