Un-dying Love

Good morning everyone. While searching for just the right quote to share and discuss with all you fine people, I came across this little story. It touched me deeply and I wanted to share it with you today.

An eight-year-old boy had a younger sister who was dying of leukemia, and he was told that without a blood transfusion she would die. His parents explained to him that his blood was probably compatible with hers, and if so, he could be the blood doner. They asked him if they could test his blood. He said sure. So they did and it was a good match. Then they asked if he would give his sister a pint of blood, that it could be her only chance of living. He said he would have to think about it overnight.

The next day he went to his parents and said he was willing to donate the blood. So they took him to the hospital where he was put on a gurney beside his six-year-old sister. Both of them were hooked up to IVs. A nurse withdrew a pint of blood from the boy, which was then put in the girl's IV. The boy lay on his gurney in silence while the blood dripped into his sister, until the doctor came over to see how he was doing. Then the boy opened his eyes and asked, "How soon until I start to die?"Jack Kornfield

I do not know if this event actually happened or if it is a part of a story meant to teach some lessons on giving without the expectation of receiving. What I do know, is that it has struck a chord with me. I remember when I was  not much older than the boy in the story, having a conversation similar to this with my younger brother who was about 7 at the time. The discussion happened after we watched a  made-for-TV movie about a set of twins. In the movie, one of the twins was really sick and needed a kidney transplant.  I asked him "If I needed your blood, would you give it to me?" He said that he would. I then asked him "What if I needed a kidney?" to which he flat out replied "No". I asked him why he would be willing to give me his blood and not his kidney and he answered that it was because his body would always make more blood but that he couldn't just grow another kidney. He said " I was born with two because I need two. It is not a spare part". To this day I don't really know if he was kidding or not back then, but I do know that if I ever needed it today, my brother would be more than willing to give anything he could to save my life, including giving his own. 

In the story, the little boy, a mere 8 years old, was expecting to do just that. He thought that by donating his blood to his sister, he was sacrificing his own life. He had accepted his own death just as he had accepted that it was his blood that was going to allow her to live. He wasn't afraid. His love for his sister and his desire for her to live outweighed any reservations he had, any thoughts that could have been percolating in his young but determined mind. This story is a reminder to me of the power of love. Usually, when people think of undying love, they automatically associate it with the romantic kind. It was a nice change to read something that was talking about the love between siblings and how that too, can be just as fierce and loyal. I hope this story has inspired you and maybe even been that gentle reminder to tell your siblings how much they mean to you. My brothers and sisters, I love you all. 

Namaste