Ladies and gentleman,
On this day, 21 years ago, my father just woke up finding himself laying in a hospital bed with the two stable kidneys that he dreamt of having. He had just recovered after receiving a kidney transplant. In honor of this celebration, I invited you all to raise a toast to my father, on this special occasion. We have come together to celebrate his twenty-first anniversary of when he survived and received a kidney transplant. He has overcome a life-threatening illness but also showed us what true strength, determination, and sacrifice truly looks like.
At the young age of 17, my father suffered from a serious medical condition that almost took his life. He had symptoms like back pain, extreme high fevers, and constant nausea, which affected his daily life and led to many hospital visits before the transplant was recommended. Due to the symptoms that he contained, he wasn’t able to complete the end of his junior nor senior year of high school. Few of his family members were willing to donate their kidneys but were either not compatible with my father’s blood type or backed down. His family, including himself, started to lose faith and believed that his life line would end there. My grandmother tried everything in her power to keep her son alive. She would pray to God every night, asking him to heal her son. Until God heard her prayers and created a miracle.
My aunt, Susana, appeared to have universal blood, which allowed her to donate one of her kidneys to my father. My father felt incredibly grateful and lucky to have had her as a sister, especially since she provided him with bravery and support throughout the journey. She had not only gifted him her kidney but also something much more valuable and special, the gift of life.
Even though my father faced many challenges, he still stays willing to give my sisters and I the support we need. He teaches us things that can happen in our daily life like how to do oil changes to cars, gardening, helps us with homework or assignments, housework, and cooking. When I was younger, my sisters and I would do activities like playing nerf guns, swimming in the pool, cheerleading, and soccer, with my father. My father tries to give us the life that he wasn’t able to have due to his illness, even when he feels weak and exhausted.
And to think that my father was just 17 years old, walking past those hospital doors, facing a serious illness that can lead to death, just shows and serves as a powerful reminder that bravery and strength doesn’t have an age requirement. He truly inspires my sisters and I to accomplish what he wasn’t able to, due to his kidney transplant.
Also, because of his story, my older sister has done many accomplishments such as being awarded 3 high school scholarships, a scholarship for Northwestern University pre-law, being vice president of the executive board of one of her scholarships, as well as being homeroom representative. My younger sister has also received awards like High Jump and the Joffrey ballet scholarship. As well as myself, who received scholarships such as Daniel Murphy, The Seal Biliteracy, A honor roll medal and tassel, Heritage Spanish, Algebra 1 honors, and The Joffrey Ballet Scholarship. All of us put in our efforts to help my dad feel that these accomplishments are because of his sacrifices.
Mairani Escott – Nazareth Academy – DMSF Class of 2030
Photo Credit: Mairani Escott