My husband calls my Christmas Wish List "pathetic." On my list I put the little things I would like...most of them utilitarian trinkets having to do with my time spent in the kitchen, which I really enjoy (this year I'm hoping Santa leaves me a 4-cup pyrex measuring cup under the tree - because I'm already wondering how I've lasted this long without one!)
But everything on my wish list is truly insignifiant compared to those hoping for a gift of time - more time to spend with family and friends, more time to celebrate holidays and milestones, more time to just be.
Thirteen such people got their Christmas wish a little early this year in what I consider to be a true miracle of science and generosity - they each received a kidney in what is (currently) the longest "chain" of kidney transplants: "Massive transplant effort pairs 13 kidneys to 13 patients" (http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/12/14/kidney.transplant/index.html?eref=rss_us&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_us+%28RSS%3A+U.S.%29)
In this paired transplant, someone wants to donate a kidney to a recipient (a husband perhaps to his wife) but find they aren't compatible. No problem! A 2nd party recipient is found and someone donates a kidney on his or her behalf to a 3rd party and so on and so on and so on until (in this case) 13 recipients were matched with 13 donors. The end result is that 13 people were given a second chance at life and the 13 donors each wound up saving not one, but two lives: they gave to save their loved one, enabling them to become a member of the circle, and they gave new life to the recipient.
A pretty wonderful Christmas present if you ask me!
~later, tw
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