I Want to Suck Your Blood...or Maybe Just Your Bone Marrow

I am the type of person who refuses to wear personal causes on my sleeve. Rubber bracelets imprinted with slogans for a good cause are, to me, more of a fashion statement than a friendly call to (braceleted) arms for support.

I don't doubt there are those who wear them to honor a loved one, and, of course, I don't begrudge them. But, a few years ago, LIVESTRONG bracelets were all the rage, and many non-profits began producing these wrist ringlets in droves with their personal messages stamped in select colors.

How many people can honestly say they still wear a LIVESTRONG bracelet?

They essentially became last year's Prada bag and were tossed aside for a Hurley t-shirt or ballet flats. Fashion drives non-profit causes, but it also fuels our desire to pick up the latest social issue and drop it when the media and its doppelgangers craft a better-fitting cause to wear.

Hurricane Katrina, anyone? Blown away by scandals and covered-up by the mud slung on the Gulf Coast shores.

Tsumani relief? Washed away in the splendor of Super Bowls, celebrity weddings, and publicity-seeking bottom feeders on reality shows.

Right now, I am in the process of moving and need to update my bone marrow donor card. This is a relatively simple, painless process unlike the painful procedures a cancer patient must undergo when battling the disease. Bone marrow donation is a multi-step process, but the initial step is simply submitting a blood sample. Your information is placed in a global registry and, if you are a suitable candidate for a patient who needs bone marrow, you are asked to become a donor.

I may never be a match, but the idea there is a possibility that I could help someone compels me to make sure my information is always current.

Maybe you don't want to ever have to make the choice to donate your marrow, but there are other choices you can make to help another human being. Donate your time - what a concept...it is also the most precious gift one can give and it will last longer than a rubber bracelet.