Wong Kai Xuan Carista, 13

School: Kent Ridge Secondary School

Topic: What does organ donation mean to you?

Award: Merit, Junior Category, 2021

The Angel

It has been thirty-five years since I had mistaken this world as a world of cannibalism. I was blinded by hatred and vengeance and I could not see the true beauty of this world until…

Those special memories of Ally never failed to make me smile. She was my heroine, a kind soul with a heart of gold. It was her who made me realise one could make an impact on one’s life.

My late husband had always been telling Ally the importance of donating what you have to others in need. I did not agree with him and there were many times where we quarreled over teaching Ally ‘nonsensical things’. To me, money and time were precious. Taking care of ourselves was the utmost priority. “Stop donating to others! So what would you be donating next? Your organs?” I would sneer and jeer at him as if he was a silly fool. It was a year ago before I realised I was wrong.

I put down the phone and rushed down to the hospital, choked with emotion and in complete devastation. Ally had terminal cancer! This time, the doctor told me to rush to the hospital to see her for the last time. I sprinted to the hospital, 1 kilometre away. The rain was pouring. The branches were shaking and the thunder roared. I felt the shiver as my heart pounded. Tears sprang down my cheeks, barging into the doors where my daughter was, panting. She had pale lips and looked very weak. There were many tubes around her nose.

“Mum”, she called me weakly and held my hand tightly. She gave the sweetest smile she tried to force out, wiping my tears away. “Mum, I don’t think I will be able to make it for your birthday celebration tomorrow and I am sorry. I have two wishes and I hope that you could fulfil them for me. My first wish is for you to stay happy and healthy and my second wish is to donate my functioning organs to people who need them.”

As soon as I nodded my head, loud, rapid, irregular beeping was heard from the life support machine. She seemed to be fighting for her last breath as her heart rate steadily declined and her voice trailed off. “I love you too,” I choked and her eyes shut. The doctor covered her with a white blanket.

I went home, lost. There was a huge struggle within me. I knew that I had made a promise to Ally that I would donate her organs. However, my cultural belief was that we were born as a whole, we should go to “the other world” as a whole. It was the toughest decision in my life. I had wild imaginations and was exasperated. I saw many of her disillusioned faces. ‘Her’ face was flushed and her teeth were clenching. She seemed to be yelling at me telling me she would hate me. I decided to grant her wish! I booked an appointment to talk to the doctor and he told me that her working liver and her eyes could be donated. Her organs were donated to two kids who were cousins, Melissa and Henry, both at the age of ten.

A month after her organs were donated, there was a knock on the door. Both kids’ parents and themselves came over to thank me and express their gratitude. For the first time, strangers warmed my heart. The gratitude they had was beyond words. I was especially touched by their words and finally understood how this world could be filled with love and happiness.

“Aunty, you changed my life,” they both said in unison.

“Your daughter allowed me to see how beautiful this world actually is. I was trapped in darkness for ten years and was finally able to see because of your daughter’s selfless act. You and your daughter are my life saviours. Your daughter is seeing what I am seeing now.”

“Thank you for letting me live on.”

I gave a tight smile, blinking back tears. There is just an invisible chain of kindness. Kindness is contagious, just like the Coronavirus we are experiencing today. I finally understood life. Looking up to the sky, I thought I saw the most beautiful angel, Ally smiling at me.

Disclaimer: Please note that the views and opinions expressed in the essays for the Live On Festival 2021 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)