Guest Post by Jason Garcia, Month 10

I’ve learned a valuable lesson in my journey to becoming a kidney donor: people perform small acts of kindness and minor miracles everyday! From the medical clinician’s attempts at easing the occasional fear of needles to how the Stanford Hospital staff has gone about conducting themselves in such a professional yet compassionate manner. Even as we reached out to our friends and family to help raise money for my post-surgical recovery, our goal was met in under two months!

I feel I’m going to walk away from this having received more than I’m going to be giving with the love everyone has shown and the kindness people are demonstrating. It feels more like a community coming together than just Niem and I going at this on our own.

I made the decision to become a donor because I truly feel we are all meant to support one another. Sometimes, stepping outside of our own needs and comfortable corners to see how we can give of ourselves in creative ways is required.

I’ve noticed that the nurses, doctors and phlebotomists I’ve worked with are all doing their job but they’re also serving an important role in their communities. They’re at the forefront of where compassion is needed most and a caring approach is invaluable. I can easily say that every single medical staff member I’ve had the pleasure of seeing has a deeper connection to compassion than most other people I come across.

It’s evident that whole villages of support are erected when the need arises and people choose to give of themselves. To everyone who stepped forward to be a part of this miraculous occasion with your financial and personal support, we can’t thank you enough. Even with the curveball life threw my best friend, everyone has been able to rally behind our flag and be a part of it.

It’s good to remember that humanity’s acts of kindness far outweigh the other end of the spectrum which can be thrown off by what our attention span tends to gravitate towards on our Twitter and Facebook feeds.

These next two months before the surgery, somehow, bring a sense of excitement to me. Close friends have begun lending their support for my eventual recovery. There’s a great app out there that itemizes the tasks that we’ll specifically need help with which people can sign themselves up for...are you kidding me! Pretty amazing as far as being there for someone is concerned.

A big THANK YOU to all of you who donated to our fundraising campaign and helped us meet our goal!!! Who knew I’d be learning just how much hearts can open up when they’re nudged by the need for their compassionate support? My family and I feel blessed to have all of you in our lives! We look forward to what these next two months will bring…