I arrived at the church at 5:30.
It took me a bit to find the place
there were only a couple half-inflated baloons
to mark the occasion.
Those, and a small sign with an arrow, which led
down some stairs and into a cafeteria. An
older lady greeted me. She had a calm smile
on her face. The kind that comes with age, that
says that you've been there, done that.
"Are you here to give?"
Of course. Why else would I be here?
"Yeah"
She leads me to a table that has a number of tall dividers
set up on it to prevent people from peeking at someone
else's personal life. Like I care if you've had syphilis in
the last year...well I might if it weren't all men in here.
I start filling out the form.
No, I don't have an STD
No, I haven't spent a time totaling more than 5 years in the UK before 1996
No, I don't use drugs
No, I haven't had a fever in the last 24 hours
No
No
No
No
No
I do admit that I have been out of the country recently.
I hand my sheet to another lady. "Where did you travel to?"
"Japan, mostly Tokyo and a few places just outside"
"Carol, could you check Japan on the list?"
She turns to me. "I'm almost certain that's OK, but I have to check". Another contented smile.
I sit down to be interviewed, we go over the questions once more.
"Alright, I just need a small sample before we begin"
She takes the sample with a small contraption that
fits over my finger and jabs a small hole. She runs
a quick test with the blood, letting a droplet fall
in a test tube filled with a blue liquid.
The droplet sinks to the bottom. She checks a box.
Apparently we're good to go.
I'm given an empty blood bag and a number of rubber-banded vials
and pointed towards a circle of beds in the middle of the room.
I walk up and a portly gentleman takes my bag and asks me
which arm I'd like it in.
"Right"
I pause.
I want to be able to check my phone while I'm doing this.
"Actually, let's do left"
He gives a grin. "Here, hold both your arms out"
I comply. I immediately notice that my right arm
has a very accessible vein. We're doing the right arm.
Oh well.
"Let's go with the Right"
I smile and sit on the plastic seat
He swabs my arm with that wonderful orange/yellow dye
and gives me a stress-ball to squeeze, to help the process go
quicker. He comes back with the needle.
I look away as I feel the uncomfortable breach of my skin.
It's a small pinch followed by a dull sensation, my body
telling me "That isn't supposed to be there, get it out".
I hate needles.
I feel a light sweat break and my breathing quickens
ever so slightly. It's ok because the hard part is over
I squeeze the stress ball every few seconds and I chat
with the man.
His name is Nick, and he's been doing this for a few years.
He used to work in a restaurant, and then he worked for a
flooring company.
He remarks
on the fake grouting that the floor in this room has.
You can tell that he loves his job, that he's satisfied with life.
He comments on the t-shirt that I will receive for doing this
(because who would do it if they didn't get a t-shirt, right?)
He says it looks like a blueberry snowcone and tells me a
rather entertaining story from his youth about blueberry
snowcones.
I pipe in with my memories of the Tropical Sno shop we had
when I was a kid.
The bag is filled, the needle is removed. A bandaid is placed,
and then my arm is wrapped with a smily-face bandage.
I give him a left-hand shake and go sit at the refreshments table
I drink a Pepsi. I hate trail mix.
After about 10min or so, I get in my car and drive home.
I put on the blueberry snow-cone colored t-shirt and sit
down to read a book. I think about the people working
at the blood drive, and I think about how happy they
seemed.
I wonder to myself what the difference is between someone
who gives blood and someone who gives time. I have friends
that travel the world for the Peace Corps, living in third world
countries with no running water, no niceties. I think of friends
who could sit in blistering heat, helping to build a house for
someone they don't even know. I think of myself, who thinks
that donating money to the Leukemia foundation and donating
blood to the Red Cross is somehow equivalent to donating sweat
and an able body.
I should really do more
maybe then I'll earn that smile
that those folks wear so proudly