Blood Sucking

I received a call from a relative yesterday evening informing me that one of his brother was sick and is now admitted at the hospital. They're from my village and from where I come, to qualify for a stint at our overcrowded state side hospital one has to have either cancer or something life threatening. So I knew it was something bad.

My first reaction was - do i need to know this shit right now?. There was already too much shit over at the saltmine to deal with and now this. But because these people are relations so I asked how he was doing. It was late evening and I had just left the saltmine and was about to reach the pub when she continued, "He was put under the knife since 6:00am and they aren't finished with him yet".

"How serious?", I asked.

"Very", she said.

So I detoured from the pub to the hospital and found a crowd at the ICU area. Mostly relations and looking very sombre. All was not well.

I didn't ask but someone said something about a ruptured vein, bad heart and busted kidney. The whole nine yards. One of the brothers later pulled me aside and asked what blood type I was because the brother needed 'A'.

I don't remember having any alcohol in the past 24 hours so I was good to give. And so early this morning I drove by at the blood bank and went through the works. Apart from the four or five blood sucking technicians who looked pretty busy, I found two other persons waiting in line to spill blood.

After filling up the necessary forms and going through the standard interview of which one of the question asked was if I had multiple sex partners in India in the past two months. Not a bad idea actually, but I had to disappoint him and declared that I haven't fucked an Indian national or for that matter, fucked in India in the last two months. I've been through this many times before and its always the last few questions that cracks me up.

Like - have you been tested positive for HIV? And I'm like what the fuck am I doing here spilling blood if I was positive.

I was later ushered to a bed next to a dude who smiled and said, "Isn't it great to know that we're actually saving lives?". I nodded and smiled back at him. I really wanted to tell him that my relation who was going to receive my pint of blood might not even make it. But I didn't want to spoil his day. I could tell he was excited and a little nervous. Could be a first timer.

It was all over in 30 minutes.

"You want this for a particular person?", one of the blood sucking technician asked.

"Yes. The name's on top of the page".

And then I left but with this thought though - why and how is it that I should feel great just because I spilled some blood and that I may possibly save a life? When I first drew blood many years ago, I never bothered that pint of blood was going to save a life. I didn't even care. I did it then because it was cool and besides them doctors will tell you its good for your health. They'll say excessive iron isn't good for the heart and shit. So its pretty much like what them ladies get every other month and that is why them ladies live longer, yo.

So even if my pint do save a life, I was already detached from it from when I left it at the blood bank and do I give a fuck? Hell, fucking No! Its very much like going to the sperm bank, you see. You take your pants down, jerk off to some bad porn and leave your shit there and then fucking leave. Yes, you may 'father' a son or a daughter but you'll never get to know your seed.

Does it matter? Fuck, no!

And it is not like my bag of blood has my name on it. Somebody needs it and if he lives because he/she had mine, so be it.

Maybe I just don't like this idea of 'saving lives'.