15 Years Ago

When 2010 began I started to think back over the past 10 years. Mainly because this November marks 10 years since my dad passed away. But then I realized something even more amazing - 15 years ago a major change happened that forever changed my family.

My dad was diagnosed with Type 1, Juvenile Diabetes, at the age of 8. He had to learn how to give himself insulin shots and learned what he could and couldn't eat. I realized that my dad was different from all of the other dads when I was 8 or 9 because he had stop working because he was declared legally blind. I remember that it totally devestated my dad. He loved working, he loved coaching my ball team and he loved working on cars.

Around the time I was 11, my dad's kidneys started failing and therefore he had to start dialysis. This process really took its toll on my dad. It made him really sleepy all the time and he started missing a lot of things. A BIG side note - my mom was absolutely amazing during them time that my dad was sick. She was our family's rock and continued to love my dad unconditionally no matter how sick he got. My mom and dad had to start making trips to Gainesville to see about the possibility of a kidney transplant. 

Well, when the organ that is being transplanted is one that can be done from living patient to living patient the hospital tends to look to the family first. Thank the Lord that my dad has 7 brothers and sisters. The University of Florida began the testing of all of the Jacobs clan and it came down to 2 siblings. My uncle Don was the one that was ultimately chosen to give my dad one of his kidneys.

In late August 1995, while most of my dad's brothers and sisters and my mom gathered in Gainesville to await the outcome of the surgery, my sister and I continued about our normal day-to-day life here in Jacksonville. I was 12 and my sister was 10 so we were old enough to understand the implications of what was happening and all of the outcomes that could occur. Well the surgery was a great success. My mom was able to come and pick up my sister and I so that we could go and see my dad and my uncle down in Gainesville.

My dad looked and felt great. My uncle on the other hand, not so much. Here's why - shortly after the surgery when the doctor and a nurse came in to check my uncle's incision they took his morphine button away and forgot to give it back. So basically he went off of morphine cold turkey. Let's just say there was some hallucinations going on and it was funny to all of us but him. And if you ask him if he would like some chicken or beef buillion cubes he is most likely to tell you NO (that is pretty much all he could eat for a week or so). I found out later that they had to take out a rib and a half of my unlce's - he  is a very tall man. The one kidney that he gave to my dad took over for both of my dad's kidneys. My dad had one working kidney and one not so good kidney.

The reason for me writing this is for me to tell my uncle Don how much I appreciated what he did for my dad and for our family. I know that my dad, my sister, and my mom have told them time and time again what it meant to them but I never knew how to say what I wanted to say.

To my Uncle Don-

I am sorry that it has taken me 15 years to get around to telling you how much I appreciated what you did for my dad in giving him your kidney. It has been completely overwhelming everything that has happened in the past 15 years. In giving my dad your kidney, you gave him an extra 5 years to spend with us, to see us grow up. You also gave him an extra 5 years to have an opportunity to have a closer relationship with you. Thank you for being there for us whenever we needed you. Thank you for giving me an extra 5 years with my dad to experience things that I might not have gotten to experience otherwise. Just thank you. I love you.

This is my dad.

This is me and my Uncle Don

Sorry this was such a long post.