Vishruth Radhakrishnan Karthik Menon, 16

School: St. Patrick’s School

Topic: Email about your father’s gift

Award: Fourth Place, Senior Category, 2022

Hey uncle Dennis,

Hope dialysis is going well and that you’re in less pain than when we last chatted. I know it’s tough and I know I will never fully understand the pain you are in but I sympathise with you. Life throws curve balls sometimes and we never realise until it is too late. The reason I am writing to you today is in hopes that I could change your mind in accepting Dad’s donation of his left kidney. You know Dad better than anyone else and when he makes a decision he is firm on it and keeps his word no matter what. So please keep reading because I know this means a lot to him.

Without a doubt for the last 43 years you have always been my father’s closest friend, an ally when times were tough, a shoulder to lean on when things went sour, and above all a brother who he could trust. And after he heard of your diagnosis his heart shattered, hence his prompt offer to give his kidney. The last two weeks have been sleepless night after sleepless night for him. Upon his return he told me more about your situation and I now understand his dire wish to help you. I hope by highlighting some of these reasons I could potentially get you to change your mind on your decision to decline his offer.

Firstly, he mentioned that with Emilia going to college and Aunt Alexandra recently retiring from her job as a teacher. This makes you the sole breadwinner of your family at the moment, and as cold and pragmatic as it may seem there is only one way to go at this point. While you may have originally felt that taking Dad’s kidney is selfish, he genuinely cares for you and the future of you and your family. This is the first reason why I believe you accepting his kidney is necessary.

This leads us to my second point which is how painful and restrictive dialysis is, especially in your case having been an athlete your entire life, not being able to get up in the morning and go for a run and work at the capability you were once able to perform at is a huge change to your quality of life and your day to day living. This is the second reason why I believe a transplant soon will allow you to get back into your regular lifestyle as soon as possible!

Thirdly, there is no one other than Dad with a kidney compatible with yours, compatibility for organ transplants is the hardest thing for people with an AB positive blood type with it being as rare a blood type as it is, finding a healthy kidney AB positive kidney is nearly impossible through the conventional waiting list method.

This is one of the main reasons Dad has been urging you to take his offer as he knows that although you have been placed on the deceased donor waiting list, these lists are infamously long and you will likely be waiting for a transplant for the next 5 years at least. Thus, by offering you his kidney he hopes he can speed up the process and get you onto the road to recovery, and back to the lifestyle you once enjoyed as well as the ability to not be confined by the restrictions of the treatment and its impact not only physically but on your mental health as well.

As you know Uncle Dennis, this procedure does not harm or affect dad’s lifespan nor does it have any major side effects. This is purely a matter of his love and affection for you and him wanting you to return to your animated self and back to normalcy. I know that you may feel that a major procedure like an organ transplant especially from your own family seems selfish but we all care for you and wish the best for you.

I know it is hard to stomach the idea of taking away something from Dad but he is adamant as ever about it, and really only cares about your health. At the end of the day it is your decision but I really hope this letter and the points I brought up encourages you to reconsider Dad’s offer. Wishing you a speedy recovery and good health.

With Love,
Vishruth

Disclaimer: Please note that the views and opinions expressed in the essays for the Live On Festival 2022 are those of the participants and are not endorsed by the National Organ Transplant Unit (Ministry of Health). To learn more about organ donation and organ transplantation in Singapore, please visit www.liveon.gov.sg