The Power of Gift Of Life
Souls go to heaven, Organs don’t. Donate life.
“My family was completely devastated when they discovered about my kidneys dysfunction. I remember my life was fairly simple like others until that day. The news brought nothing but misery. I was shattered as something inconceivable had happened in my late twenties. I had started to settle in my career and was planning to walk down the aisle soon. But getting married and having children sounded like a distant dream. The list of recipients was long. I was on the verge of losing faith when we received a call from the hospital. Tears of joy rolled down my cheeks as the words, ‘we have found a donor for you’ fell into my ears. God has plan for everyone. Perhaps, I was not done living yet. My donor was a 19-year-old girl named Swarna. I thank her sweet soul every single day. My wife and I gave birth to a sweet child and he is here with me today. I owe my entire existence to a kind soul and I can not put my gratitude in words. This body is just a temporary cloth-covered machine fitted with a soul. We all have to leave it some day. What will I do with my organs after I die? I will definitely donate my organs because I know how it feels like waiting for life to give one more chance.” — And the entire room was filled with applauds as the man shared his overwhelming story with us.
We were fortunate to hear a deeply touching story of an organ recipient, who came to attend the organ donation awareness drive. The event called ‘Pledge to Donate’ was organised by VFC inside a school campus as part of We are Ready(WAR) campaign. The issue that we addressed was difficult and challenging. In order to convince people to come forward and donate organs isn’t just complex but a very delicate issue.
Our guest speaker Dr. Varsha, a doctor cum professor from a reputed college in Bangalore talked about the importance of organ donation. The session lasted for almost three hours. The volunteers and participants were earful and concerned about the subject. I had participated in the session with zero prior knowledge about organ donation but left the room with lot of information on the topic. I am going to talk less about immortality here but let us first understand the organ donation because I believe there is very little understanding about this subject in general. I had not cared to dig deeper either until I participated in an organ donation awareness drive.
Organ donation means donating an organ or tissues to someone in need. A donor can donate organs like heart, kidneys, part of the liver, bone marrow, eyes or tissues. Donation occurs after someone has died. Live donors can donate kidneys or part of their liver. Even if a donor has pledge to donate his organs after death, donation can not occur without the consent of his/her immediate family. If you have decided to be an organ donor, share your wish with family so that they know what you want.
Let me also shed light on the statistics a bit. In India, the current organ donation rate is 0.26 donors per million population as compared to more than 30 donors per million in some western countries. There is serious shortage of organs and the gap between the number of organs donated and the number people waiting for transplants is ever increasing. According to one estimate, 90% of patients waiting to receive an organ die without getting one.
Bindu, one of our highly-spirited volunteer, recollected a horrific incidence from the past with extreme grief, when her brother was deeply injured in a severe road accident. I could feel the change in ambience as few volunteers shared their deepest feelings, longing for their loved ones. Dhanya, Vishal, Kamraj, Abhilash and other proactive volunteers registered themselves as organ donors.
Don’t think of organ donations as giving up part of yourself to keep a total stranger alive. It’s really a total stranger giving up almost all of themselves to keep a part of you alive ~ Author Unknown
At the end of the session, willing participants registered themselves as organ donors and received a pledge card that read “I AM AN ORGAN DONOR”.
It is unthinkable for any of us to understand the pain and grief of a family who wish to see their loved ones healed and healthy once again. This small video speaks thousands of words without uttering a single word.
You are born with tremendous abilities to change someone’s life. Recognize your inner strength and bring the change in your society. Be an Organ Donor.
In case you missed our last drive and interested in joining us, we are organising next session of awareness on 13th August, recognised as Organ Donation Day in India, at Govt college, Peenya, Bengaluru. For more updates on upcoming events follow our facebook page here.
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