Though I have not donated blood directly due to my age and weight, others donating
blood has drastically affected my life. About three years ago, my friend was diagnosed with
leukemia. The journey she was about to go through seemed almost impossible. We had seen all
the movies, we’ve read The Fault In Our Stars , we knew cancer was bad. But we never knew it
would affect any of us. We were thirteen year old girls, new and innocent to the teenage years,
with no idea what was ahead of us. We had just started our freshman year. Everyone just thought
she had a cold, a common sickness from the weather change. We assumed her exhaustion was
from watching too many Grey’s Anatomy episodes at not and not sleeping enough. We didn’t
think she was getting enough sun, so she she was getting pale. The “C” word never came to
mind. Then the tests came, followed by hours of tears and sorrow. The next few days arrived in a
haze for her, different hospitals, different doctors, and a new test every day. The trips were hard
to adjust to. It was hard on her parents individually, as well as their relationship, and it was hard
on the rest of us as well. Imagining life without Logan was horrific. It seemed like a nightmare.
Things got horrendously harder before they ever got easier. She lost her hair, she became
very pale, and she never seemed to smile. The Logan we all knew and loved was gone, and no
one was sure if she would ever be back. She went through chemotherapy and radiation and it all
seemed to make her worse. It was a terrifying six months. There was nothing anyone could do to
Terry 2
make her feel better, physically or emotionally. She was emotionally exhausted. The needles,
prodding, and poking at her skin, the endless nights in the hospital beds, the stress caused on her
family, it was the hardest thing she had to go through, and knowing there was nothing I could do
was devastating. But then she started blood transfusions to bring cells that could fight the cancer
cells back into her body. Her color returned and so did her happiness. She gained a new strength
every day. She could finally walk on her own, and she didn’t need as many naps to keep her
energy at its highest. She finally laughed at jokes again and any time she got a visitor her face
would light up the room. Other’s blood donations changed Logan’s life, which in the biggest
way changed mine. She is now a junior, with the prettiest hair I have ever seen and the most
intelligent mind. She inspires me every single day to be the best version of myself, because I
know that one day it could all slip away. I still have my friend, and for that Oklahoma Blood
Institute will always hold a special place in my heart. My life will forever be changed.
