by Nick Li ’17
Once again, the blood bank, sponsored by the American Red Cross, came to visit University School, in hopes that our blazer-clad peppers would step up perform a noble deed for the larger community. And once again, they were disappointed.
“I have a swim meet on the weekend. Gotta be in best shape.”
“My mom didn’t sign my form.”
“I don’t meet the weight requirement.”
“I got stuff to do during lunch.”
“I’m deathly afraid of needles.”
“I don’t want to.”
These are just few of the excuses I’ve heard when wandering around the school, asking if people were going to be donating. Some excuses like “I don’t meet the weight requirement” are fine and valid, but others I heard, like “None of my friends are going” are not.
I would like to clear up some misconceptions. The donation is not as horrible and traumatizing as many would think. Yes, you do see your own blood sucked out of your body, but really, it’s not that bad. You sorta get used to it a few minutes in. The donation process only hurts when the needle goes in. After that, I got small cramps in my arm, similar to that one gets when doing a bunch of curls without warming up. There is no pain in the artery, light-headedness, hallucinations, or fainting, contrary to the stories people tell me. For the average 130-pound sixteen-year old male, there is almost no reason one would not be able to withstand the procedure. You even get cookies afterwards.
After the donation, I talked to John Bell, who organized the event. “Honestly, I didn’t expect sixty people to show up,” he says, “That was mostly for hype. The goal was actually thirty.” Having said that, the goal of thirty people was met. A total of thirty-nine students donated. Even if sixty students showed up.
The US community can be seen as apathetic towards most charity events. A good example is the Thanksgiving drive each year. And the only way we all manage to get that done is from Ms. Lawrence’s constant guilt-feeding.
To conclude my experience, I think no amount of guilt-feeding can really spur the US community into a blood fountain. Students will either realize the importance of this blood drive and do it, or continue to ignore it. Until the day they do, we can only hope that the people receiving the blood will use the same excuses.
“I don’t want the blood. None of my friends are getting it.”