Life always holds surprises when you least expect them. Today, my surprise came in the form of a Google search when I read that the first successful living-related donor transplant also occurred on Thanksgiving Day. The transplant was performed at the University of Chicago, Thanksgiving Day 1989, when 21-month old Alyssa Smith, of Schertz,TX, received a portion of her mother Terri's liver. Alyssa suffered from biliary atresia, the most common childhood cause for liver transplant.
To me it is amazing to know that man has the ability to take a piece of a living or a deceased donor liver and transplant it into a gravely ill person and give them health. For that to have happened to me last Thanksgiving gives the holiday special meaning.
There is a feeling of being a "we" that I've developed. The "we" being my liver and me. I no longer walk in solitude as there is this connection that I feel to my donor.
As the time comes closer to my transplant anniversary date, I have a sense of longing to meet my donor family. I need to know they have found comfort and peace with their decision. I want to show them how their compassion has turned life around for my family and me. Maybe it is selfish but I want to know about the person who's liver has made it possible for me to be here this Thanksgiving. I hope that my donor family senses the care and concern that I feel for them at this time of the year.
And always...Keep your spirits high...robin
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