I've spent most of this weekend studying for my finals which are on Monday and Tuesday. I'll do alright, but I really can't wait until after Tuesday so that life can resume. I've already got a long list of things that I wish to do after finals.
Now that I'm healthy again, one of the first things I want to do after finals is donate blood. The holidays are a really hard time for blood donation centers, as the holidays really make a mess of the routine of donation. People get busy and have a hard time scheduling their appointments, so traditionally this time of year, the blood stores are very low. The way that blood storage works is like this: blood can be stored for 6 weeks, but as the blood is used up, the stores are depleted, so there might only be a two week supply of blood rather than a six week supply. If you can find the time to give blood this holiday season, please do.
For those who are wondering why I feel so strongly about blood donation, it's because you are helping someone out -- it's someone's brother, sister, mother, father, wife, husband, child, grandfather, grandmother, cousin, co-worker, or friend that you're helping out. You're helping to save the life of someone out there that somebody cares about.
I guess I think of it this way. What if someone you loved needed help? You'd do anything to help them, right? What if you couldn't do anything to help them out? Wouldn't you want someone who could do something to help them out? We don't always share the same blood type as the people we love... but someone out there does and cared enough to help out.
I'm deathly afraid of needles, but I donate whenever I can because I can recover from the fear... those who need blood might not have the chance to recover if they don't have the blood. I know there are those out there who cannot donate, for a variety of reasons... but of everyone who is eligible to donate blood, only 10% actually do.
Anyway, back to studying...
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