Humbled

Many of you read Phantom's blog, so you have heard about Annika. It's a heart-breaking story, and I'll give the extremely short version here: Moreena's daughter Annika was born with a serious liver disease, and needs another transplant. Because Annika has been in the hospital since November, she has already reached her insurance plan's limit ($1,000,000), which leaves her currently uninsured.

I have clicked over to Moreena's blog several times to read her eloquent posts. Only rarely have I commented, however--somehow I feel unqualified to offer any support. My nice easy life with my relatively healthy children doesn't seem to give me any credibility or a place from which I can offer anything valuable. If I'm to be honest, I think I am also afraid. Afraid to get too close to something that is so incredibly scary.

Despite that fear, I still hope for the best, for Moreena and her family. When all this first came up, I wanted to help, as much as possible. So as soon as I saw that the COTA page was up, I clicked over to make a donation. (You can go here, to a page Andrea set up, to find other ways to help.) In order to have the money go to Annika, you select her name from a list of children, all awaiting transplants of some kind.

That list floored me. What a long, long hideous list. All those kids, with all those parents, all those people hurting, physically and emotionally. I'd like to make a donation to each and every one of them.

Today, a donation for just Annika will have to do.



Now I slink off to give Isaac a hug and blow my sleeping daughter a kiss.