Istiak Needs a Kidney : Istiak Necesita un Riñón

Do you remember this smiling face? I wrote about Istiak in my post https://www.bebee.com/producer/@joyce-bowen/am-i-a-racist.

I saw Issy this morning.  His smile is brilliant.  He told me he showed his mother this post, and she told him it was a good omen.  He has accepted that he will probably die and that I do not doubt with the small response to this post.  I consider Issy to be a dear friend.  I will miss him if he goes.

Oftentimes, I would go into the convenience store, and there would be a scowling Istiak behind the counter. I cajoled and smiled, and finally found that smiling Istiak so prominently depicted in these pictures.

Being rooted in the mind of a journalist, I poked and prodded Istiak’s personality until he finally revealed a dark secret. Istiak is on Dialysis. His kidneys have failed. He had had untreated high blood pressure, and it has taken his kidneys. Now I understand the difficulty he experiences upturning those lips into a smile. I suspect he is tired far too often. He’s been on Dyalisis for two years.

Ali 🐝 Anani, Brand Ambassador @beBee wrote a buzz that was conducive to caring—how it helps to take a moment—pay attention—and care. I tried to find it and failed miserably. Dude—you are just so prolific with your mind-bending Buzzes.

I’ll let Istiak introduce himself:

Hi,

My name is Istiak Ahmed, and my date of birth is May 20, 1992. I was born in Kushtia Bangladesh. I came to the USA on an immigrant visa. I became a USA citizen in 2015. In May of 2015, my kidneys were found to be damaged by high blood pressure. I am on dialysis now and am on the Kidney Transplant List at MGH. I do dialysis Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday in Salem, Massachusetts Dialysis Center.

                                                                                          Istiak on Dyalisis

Istiak's--Issy, I call him--email is istiakahmed667@gmail.com.

His phone number is: 617-595-1836

The Growing Need

There are over 80,000 people on the kidney transplant waiting list – and many people wait more than 5 years for a kidney from a deceased donor. The waiting list has doubled in size over the past 10 years - and it continues to grow. Millions of dollars are spent to encourage people to register to be an organ donor in the event of their untimely death. However, only 1% of the deaths result in organs that could be used. Even if all of these organs were able to be recovered, it would not alleviate the shortage. A staggering 4,500 people die every year waiting for a kidney transplant. Many of these individuals were good candidates for a transplant when they were first put on the waiting list.

Nationally, the number of living kidney transplants has decreased in each of the past 4 years. The programs currently in place have not been effective at increasing the number of living kidney donations. Information about living kidney donation is available from many sources; transplant hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, nonprofit organizations and numerous web sites. However, this information is either not reaching the people who need it the most, or does not provide adequate help. Equally important, there isn’t a program available that helps someone communicate their need for a living kidney donation to family members and friends. Fear of speaking about their need is one of the main reasons and hurdles given for not pursuing living donation.

My hope? Something magical will happen, and this will spread far enough through virtual reality for this young man to connect up with a kidney. I will miss his smile if I go into our neighborhood store and he is not there to complete my purchases. For him to face mortality at such a young age disheartens me.

For those of you who can - share away.

Istiak necesita un riñón

Istiak necesita un riñón. ¿Recuerdas esta cara sonriente? Escribí sobre Istiak en mi publicación: https://joycebowen.wordpress.com/2017/09/10/am-i-a-racist/

A menudo, iba a la tienda de conveniencia, y había un Istiak frunciendo el ceño detrás del mostrador. Yo engatusé y sonreí, y finalmente encontré ese sonriente Istiak representado tan prominentemente en estas imágenes.

Siendo enraizado en la mente de un periodista, pinché y presioné la personalidad de Istiak hasta que finalmente reveló un secreto. Istiak está en Diálisis. Sus riñones han fallado. Había tenido presión arterial alta no tratada, y le han quitado los riñones. Ahora entiendo la dificultad que experimenta al convertir esos labios en una sonrisa. Sospecho que está cansado con demasiada frecuencia. Ha estado en Dyalisis durante dos años.

Ali 🐝 Anani, Brand Ambassador @beBee

¿Mi esperanza? Algo mágico sucederá, y esto se extenderá lo suficiente a través de la realidad virtual para que este joven se conecte con un riñón. Extrañaré su sonrisa si voy a nuestra tienda de barrio y él no está allí para completar mis compras. Para él enfrentar la mortalidad a una edad tan joven me desalienta.

Para aquellos de ustedes que puedan compartir.

Joyce Bowen

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About the Author:  Joyce Bowen is a freelance writer and public speaker.  Inquiries can be made at crwriter@comcast.net

Sobre el autor: Joyce Bowen es un escritorindependiente y orador público. Las consultaspuedenhacerse en crwriter@comcast.net