Megan Ang Le Xuan, 14

School: Edgefield School (Secondary)

Topic: Journey of a transplanted organ

What It Truly Means To Be Alive

I first belonged to a girl named Christabelle. She was such a cheerful young girl, and I was so happy to beat for her. However, one day, everything changed.

It was a normal day, and I was pumping like how I always did. However, suddenly, I felt something pierce Christabelle’s lungs. It felt like a bullet! Frantically, I tried to continue beating, but when her lungs started to fail, I knew it was hopeless.

Christabelle was dying, but somehow, I was still here.

Suddenly, there was a bright flash. Cold hands lifted me from Christabelle’s body and lowered me into a sterile solution. For the first time in my life, there was nothing to beat for.

I was petrified. I didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye to Christabelle! I was her heart, and I was never supposed to leave her, least of all when she was bleeding and dying like she was now.

After a while, the same hands removed me from the solution. “Is Evie ready?” I heard someone ask urgently. “Yes, bring the heart in,” someone else said.

Evie. So, I guess I was her heart now. I was placed into her body and for a second, everything felt wrong. I didn’t know how her body worked but still, I tried to pump. It took me a few minutes but slowly, I regained my rhythm and beat for Evie.

I soon realised that Evie’s emotions were the opposite of Christabelle’s constant happiness. She had panic attacks often and every time, I had to pump extremely fast to keep up with her anxiety. Her depression weighed down every beat I made but I never gave up. My biggest fear was that one day, her sadness would become so all-encompassing that it was all I would feel each day.

Despite Evie’s struggles, there was love that filled me sometimes too. Different parts of me were dedicated to different people that Evie loved, like her family and her best friends, Noah and Charlotte. I always hoped that one day, Evie’s focus in life would be on her loved ones instead of her depression.

One day, I was beating like how I always did when something switched. I felt invisible cracks form on me. Evie’s pain was breaking me slowly. I felt so terrified. Could Evie stop it from engulfing me before it was too late?

Day by day, every beat I made was heavy with sadness, and those invisible cracks spread until I was consumed by it. However, I tried to pull my broken parts together and continue pumping.

One day, I suddenly felt such immense sadness and loss overwhelm me. I struggled to beat through the haze of Evie’s pain. I felt the cracks splintering through me until they broke me apart, shattering me into a million pieces.

No! I tried to hold myself together, but the part of me dedicated to Charlotte had vanished. I instantly knew that Evie had somehow lost Charlotte.

For the next few days, grief for Charlotte was all I felt. I fought to continue beating, but I was fading.

Just when I thought it was hopeless, something changed in me. The part of me dedicated to Noah increased, taking up more space and pushing out some of Evie’s sadness. I knew Noah was helping Evie feel better, causing her love for him to grow and causing her pain to ease.

As time passed, the part of me dedicated to Noah kept growing and I felt the change he brought out in Evie. Even though her pain never fully went away, love pulsed through me more often than sadness did. Her depression wasn’t as heavy anymore and the beats I made were light and happy. Evie had grown so much and had become so strong. I knew she was out there right now with Noah by her side, having the time of her life. I could only dream of the many adventures that awaited her in the future.

By being Evie’s heart, I learnt that, as the saying goes, there is one moment where you know you are not a sad story. You are alive. Right now, I knew that Evie was no longer a sad story. She was filled with all the love and happiness that had once seemed unachievable. She was living the life of her dreams surrounded by people she loved with all of her being.

I could not be prouder of my girl if I tried.

Disclaimer: Please note that the views and opinions expressed in the essays for the Live On Festival 2026 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 ↗ (opens in new tab)