I did something on the spur of the moment the other day -- one of those private, warm and fuzzy things that I considered my holiday gift to myself. After reading the e-mail from Michelle Obama today that talked about giving of ourselves, I thought I would share what I did in the hopes of encouraging someone else to do the same.
I have resorted to shopping at Wal-Mart again due to the fluctuating state of economics in our household. Normally, I ignore the solicitors and petition-signers that invariably are hovering around as you exit the store. However, last Sunday, I stopped to listen -- who knows why. I am usually too busy rushing from one place to another to stop and listen, but this day was different. The spirit of the holidays perhaps.
Anyway, there were two men requesting shoppers to sign up for the National Marrow Donor Program. One of them had a young nephew who had been on the waiting list for a bone marrow transplant for nine months. I chatted a little with them -- I knew the odds of my being a matching donor in this case were slim to none, as his relative is half-Japanese and I am Caucasian. However, once you are in their donor bank, your information is available to potential donor recipients world-wide.
It took about three minutes to fill out their paperwork and maybe a minute to swab four sections of the lining of my mouth for the samples. No blood, no needles. If I am ever a match, they told me that the procedure for actually donating marrow is similar to donating platelets (which I have also done in the past and also highly recommend -- but it does take about two hours start to finish). I had visions of a long needle going into my hip, but that is apparently not how they do it. (Much as that sounds creepy, I did go through amniocentesis once upon a time and it couldn't be any creepier than that procedure was!)
At this time of year, the blood banks are depleted and the need for blood does up. Platelets are always needed and are used in cancer treatments. The gift of matching bone marrow will save a life. It's just that simple.
If you are interested, please go to marrow.org or call 1-800-MARROW-2 for more information. You can contact your local Red Cross to donate blood and to get information on platelet donations.
I gave a little piece of me today and I will never miss it. Maybe I saved a life today. Maybe you can too. My gift to all of you. Happy Holidays and know hope.
Martha