Give Some Blood, Share the Love…

This past year has been full of requests for giving. So many people around the globe need help, from the tsunami a year ago, to hurricane victims, to volcano victims, you name it.

This time, it is much, much closer to home for me. You can easily help, and it doesn’t cost you a thing. Seriously. Keep on reading for the details…

First, the background story. Back in 1985, I moved to Houston. That fall, I became friends with a girl at my high school – we will call her J. because we’re keeping her name off the internet, ok? J. and I became best friends, and I simply adored her. Not only did I adore her, I adored her whole family. I loved spending time at her house, maybe because I’m an only child and there are 7 kids in her family. Quite a change from my quiet house. Probably even more for the zany, crazy antics of J. and her whole family. Shortly before my senior year, J.’s family moved to San Antonio, and I was quite sad. We still saw each other though – my parents even let me fly to San Antonio to see her, my first plane trip all by myself! (It was only a $50 flight and I didn’t have a car, so it was the best way to get there.) She dated friends of mine, I met people through her, it was a good life. The last time I visited her in San Antonio, I got to meet her older sister, who took us to Austin and 6th Street. (I hate beer, so I didn’t drink there – but it was still fun to check it out!) Her older sisters had already graduated by the time we met in 1985, so I didn’t know them really, but I remember thinking at the time that she was such a cool person. Not surprising, all things considered.

When I married my ex-husband, J. drove in a horrible rainstorm from Austin to College Station to get to my wedding. I was so happy to see her, I still remember running across the room. You should see the grin on my face in those photographs. That was back in the early 90s. I moved to Germany shortly after that, and we lost touch. I talked to her once, around 1997 or so, but she moved, I moved … you get the picture. Back then, e-mail wasn’t the option that it is today.

Flash forward to December. I’m reading Deb’s blog. She posts about coming from a huge family. 7 kids. She talks about them being Catholic. She mentions having one older sister and two younger ones. Most importantly, how her family is so full of love. I’m thinking how amusing it is, how it reminds me so much of J.’s family. Then I start thinking some more. Then I scroll to find a photo of Deb with hair … one that made me think that she looked like someone I knew before when I saw it … only to realize she IS somone I know. Or rather someone I once knew – J.’s older sister, the one who took us to Austin for that fun-filled night on 6th street. It was late when I figured it all out, and I would have been screaming if I hadn’t been the only person awake in the house. I was so stunned when it all clicked, I got no sleep that night. I was just giddy.

I’ve since confirmed it with Deb, and we’ve talked. I haven’t had a chance to talk to J. yet – I have to admit some fear in doing so. I’m just strange like that. I’ll get over it.

Now here is where YOU come in. If you caught the sentence there about looking for a photo of Deb with hair, you might have realized that Deb is fighting a huge battle right now. In November, she was diagnosed with Leukemia. Very suddenly, out of nowhere, had been sick for awhile and couldn’t shake it, only to discover the truth. I started a post about her back then, back before I discovered the J. connection, to ask people to PLEASE donate blood. It seemed so lost in the shuffle of my medical woes, which felt so trivial at the time compared to hers, that I never took it out of draft mode. So now that my own dust has settled, I wanted to take a moment to ask you to help her out.

Give blood.

It doesn’t cost you a dime, and it will truly help her. You can donate in her name, and she will receive credits for the units you donate. If you live in Houston, you can donate through the blood bank. But living in Houston isn’t a requirement (I will confirm that with the blood bank tomorrow), you can donate no matter WHERE you live. HELP fight the dracula blood. Help save her life, or someone else’s, with your blood.

You can also help by being tested to be a bone marrow donor. I will find her posts about this subject this weekend, but there is a great need for you to do this. Being a donor is not the intensive process that it used to be, and really – if you could save a life, why wouldn’t you?

Another thing she could use right now is you to lift her up with prayers, positive thoughts, healing vibes, whatever is your thing. Her brother is a donor match for her, so she will be having a transplant in the not too distant future. Chemo has been hard on her. Loneliness is a battle too, between being in the hospital and just being away from her daughter and her family. (Kids are around so many cooties and her immune system is so compromised from the chemo, she can’t spend much time with her and so her daughter is living with her sister right now.) The Internet is her lifeline to the world, and she NEEDS you.

I regret that I personally can’t donate blood – living in Germany in the early 90s for over 6 months disqualifies me. I’m not going to let that stop me though – I want to get as many people as I can to donate blood for HER.

I am constantly amazed by her strength and courage. I am inspired by her every time I read her site or talk to her on the phone. She is incredible. Her daily assignments are so amazing – they always hit home for me, it seems like right when I need to be reminded the most to do something, she talks about it. (That is why there is a photograph of fruit up there – click on it to read the story behind it over on Flickr.) Really, I could go on and on. But you should just go see for yourself.

If you can help, please contact me via e-mail – christine at this domain.com – and I will send you the information this weekend (I need a little time to get it all together) that you need to donate in her name. You can also contact her directly through her site.

Appreciate your life. Be tested to be a bone marrow donor. Give blood. Help save her life.