- Because 22 years ago this week my mom lost her battle with leukemia
- Because in the last two months, 3 family members have needed blood
- Because I'm giving thanks for my daughter's twelve years of life
- It's just a nice thing to do for three people
Pick a reason, any reason. I had them all in mind when I went down to the Air Canada Centre this afternoon to join The Big Save, Toronto's largest donor clinic event this year. I took the above photo with my left hand while lying on the bed giving blood, right on the ACC floor. It was pretty cool, looking around from an angle I will likely never have again...following the walkways above the rafters, seeing that the Leafs have, in fact, not won a Stanley Cup since before man landed on the moon (the city is overlooking this for a few weeks, still riding the golden Team Canada high), and scanning the sections for Hubby's and my seats for next week's date with Alicia Augello Cook, aka..... The actual collection of my blood took only 7 minutes. The sweet nurse who worked with me, Rosario, said I filled the bag so quickly, because I'm small but juicy. **blushing**
This event drew a lot of first-timers (ahem, I've got two donations under my belt now), possibly because Maple Leaf Sports tossed in a few raffles and appearances by athletes, members of the Raptors Dance Pak and mascots. And this guy:
This is Carl Gunnarsson, a Maple Leaf. I only know this because I looked him up on the team website. I was the only soul at the recharge-snacks station who was not staring, getting autographs or trying to pose for a photo with him. In fact, all I did was call my sister to tell her I saw this NHL dude, and was so engrossed in my own world that I failed to notice the chick next to me at my snack table had keeled over onto the seat beside her. So, no, donating blood is not for everybody. (I suspect, in hindsight, that she was below the minimum weight of 110lbs. After a bit of commotion, and me feeling totally crappy for not seeing her faint, she woke up and I was assured she would be fine.) But, if you have ever contemplated giving blood, I highly recomment you look into it. Toronto uses more blood than it collects and has to import quite a bit from other provinces. No, you don`t get money for your donation. Instead, you will be thanked by every nurse and volunteer who comes within 10 feet of you during your visit for saving a few lives.
