Lifeline by Chelsea Dagg (surface ebook reader TXT) 📕

had rushed into my heart. I did not want my daughter going through the process of a bone marrow donation, but I think I knew right away that nothing I could do or so would change her mind. I have a very stubborn girl.
I remember when she was thirteen and we had gone on vacation to Mexico. Each of the kids got to choose an activity and we all had to go, and, hopefully participate. Matt and Drake and chosen simple water activities like scuba-diving and a boat ride along the coast. Sage, however, had wanted to go zip-lining. I had secretly looked into it, and kids were allowed to go at this place near the resort we were staying at, but still, no one else was interested, and, although I was, I wasn’t ecstatic about letting my children zip-line across a valley.
Mark and I took her aside one day and tried to talk her into something else, we even tried bribing her. But she was staying strong on the whole zip-lining thing, and wouldn’t waver. We did end up zip-lining, and I have to say, it was one of the best experiences of my life.
Anyways, knowing my daughter’s stubbornness, I still tried for over a week to talk her out of it, saying I’d probably just try the drugs, see how things went with that. Eventually, like on that trip in Mexico, she got her way. I was getting worse, and even the doctors were starting to highly recommend the transplant. Sage. My lifeline.

SAGE

Even though my bone marrow donations were the most painful thing I’ve ever experienced in my life, the fact that I was saving my mom’s made it all worth it. I know that sounds very cheesy, but every time I went in, I thought only of mom, and it made the pain feel good. I didn’t relish it, mind you, but a life without my mom would be much more painful than the extraction of my bone marrow.
As I mentioned, our relationship changed again around that time. I’m sure it would have got better in any case, but this crisis speeded things along. My mom and I started spending more time together. There was no more yelling, just talking. I got to know my mom better in those days than I ever had before, and I learned a lot about her. She is strength and courage. I am so proud of her.
It’s funny how tragedy can change a person or, in our case, a family’s life. We started doing more things together, like sitting down at the table to eat and chat. We designate one night a week to play games or watch a movie.
I guess I should mention that after I had secretly had myself checked to see if I could donate my bone marrow, the rest of my family did too. I was the only match. I was my mom’s lifeline.
The transplants were very hard on my mom, with the chemotherapy and radiation treatments as well. There were, and still are many touch and go times. She’s still undergoing chemotherapy, but her body seems to have accepted this bout of bone marrow.
She is not out of the clear, but my family has high hopes, and with all that optimism and support backing her, how can she fail?
I love my mom more than anything in the world, and if I had to do it over, I would. I would donate or do anything I could in order to help her. This experience has cemented our family relationship, and even better, it has helped to expand and grow my relationship with the most amazing woman I know.
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Publication Date: 01-28-2010

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