The perfect pick-me-up
IF you are feeling a bit cheesed off with all this lockdown kerfuffle, dear reader, you are not alone. So am I. Expect quite a few of us are. Especially now it looks like all we have to look forward to in the future is a whole ton of tiers falling round our ears. Luckily, however, help is at hand. In this very column.
Think I might just have found the perfect pick me up. For you, me and anyone else who wants one. A way to bring the colour back to your cheeks, get the song in your heart going strong and generally, make everything feel a whole lot better. For a while. Best thing is that it’s really simple. Seriously. Couldn’t be easier. Just get yourself down to your local blood donor centre. That’s it. That’s all you have to do. Pretty much. Apart from donate, obviously. Now, I realise that might sound like odd advice, so let me explain.
Regular readers may remember that many months ago I had a bit of cough, which may or may not have been covid. Either way, I went upstairs to live in the loft until it went away. A while later, the NHS asked for people who might have had the dreaded bug to get in touch. Apparently, if you have the right antibodies floating around inside you, the blood donor folk might be able to use your plasma to help people who are recovering from covid.
Long story short, I recently got an appointment to visit the Southmead blood donor centre to get assessed. To see if my plasma would be of any use. When the time came to set off towards Southmead, it was a dark grey day, filled with drizzle and despair. To be honest, I almost gave up before I started. Nearly stayed home. It was one of those days, if you know what I mean. Where misery and moaning are your closest companions and nothing seems right with the world.
Luckily, I ignored the temptation to sit on the sofa and wallow. Instead, jumping on the scooter I made my way across town. Naturally, being a medical centre, stuffed to the gunwhales with medical staff, they had everything ready for the realities of modern life. Hand sanitiser, thermometer check, masks and social distancing were the order of the day. But they also had something else on offer. Something that can’t be bought. A bright and sunny demeanour. Priceless. Walking through those doors was like walking from darkness to light. From down to up. It felt as if every single solitary member of staff was a welcoming, happy ray of sunshine.
It’s not just the staff who light up the room. As I sat there, filling out the necessary forms, making sure I was fit and well enough to proceed, a slow stream of donors trickled in. A broad cross section of society, all taking time to help a total stranger. To give someone they will never meet or know, the chance to get well again. To get back to better health. I could go on, but you get the picture, I’m sure. It lifted the spirits just being there. All those people gathered together in one building to try and make the world a slightly better place for some random strangers who needed help. As far as lifting the soul goes, it was up there with the best.
The only fly in my own personal ointment pot, was the knowledge that I was only there for tests. I couldn’t actually give anything right there and then. Not until the results come back. But either way, whatever the tests decide, whether my antibodies are of use or not, one thing is absolutely guaranteed. I will be going back. Oh, yes. To give blood, as usual, or plasma, I don’t care.
If I’m being completely honest, the fact that it might actually be possible to help some other soul is brilliant, fantastic and definitely worth doing all by itself. But, also, just being there, seeing so many people pulling together to work towards such a goal, is a lifeenhancing experience all in itself. Really helps with the lows of lockdown too.
So, if you are on the lookout for a tonic to fight off the tiers, to put a smile in your heart, then I can thoroughly recommend giving this place a visit. It’s the perfect antidote to feeling down in the dumps. The perfect place to remember just how wonderful, warm and awesome humanity can be. They even give you biscuits! Yet another reason I can’t wait to go back.
Hope you and yours are safe, well and happy.
Until next time, all the best
Seeing so many people pulling together to work towards such a goal, is a life-enhancing experience. Really helps with the lows of lockdown too.