Donate your spleen, you buggers

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NIKON D70 - 1/60 sec, f4.5 at 50mm

I heard tonight on TV3 News that only 29 people donated their organs last year to help someone else in New Zealand.

As the recipient of a donation by somebody else, I'm acutely aware of the value of the gift of a body part. I look out though the same window that that person looked out every day of their life. The fact that within the next 5 years I'm going to need another person to give up a little bit of their body for me plays on my mind in the middle of the night every now and then (admittedly not that often though).

I try not to think too much about the person that gave me their cornea. I don't know what sort of person they were. I don't know what they did or didn't do. I don't know how they treated their kids or wife or even if they had kids or a wife. Bloody hell, I don't even know if they had a husband for Pete's sake. I don't know what they dreamed about or desired and I don't know why or how they died.

What I do know is that they took the time to tell someone that once they no longer needed their body that I was allowed a bit of it. It's an odd feeling to be grateful to someone but not know who that someone was.

So, for the rest of you, please go tell someone close to you right now that you want to hand over a bit of your body when and if you die before your time. You will no longer need your eyes or your skin or you lungs, your spleen (what ever the hell that is) or your heart. Tell your wife or girlfriend right now. And if you are some sort of weird freak who has a "partner" instead, tell them. Go do it right now. Then they will know what to do when/if the time comes.

Someone just like me, or you, will be waiting for those bits tomorrow.

I had something else planned for my 200th photo tonight. But I decided this was more important. The photo is another from my cowch / off camera flash experiments. Not that great a shot I admit. But I'm wondering why the hell you are still reading this and not off making sure that people know you are willing to donate your eyes.

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Posted: Wednesday, 15 February, 2006 21:15

Captured: 2006:02:15 20:54:21

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  • My 3 'lads' all signed up to donate when they got their licences...I think the scary bit of donating is long gone and we all just need a rev to sign up too...just remember you don't know who the person was....but they do and are probably observing you from great height....delighted that you are looking after their body part.
    Michele - Thursday, 16 February, 2006 8:48

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