There’s one person I learned about today who has an admirable life mantra. The young man is D’Marco Jackson, and he lived with aplastic anemia (AA), but he succumbed to cancers that attacked his bone marrow.
So, today’s big question is inspired by D’Marco. Maybe it’s not the biggest question, but in my humble opinion, it’s a pretty significant one: When we die, how do we want to be remembered? Wait a minute. That may be a little on the dark side of thoughts; I can rephrase it: As we live, how do we want to leave our mark on this world? That’s a little better. Maybe.
Whichever question we turn to answer in the next 250 words of our philosophical moment here, one thing’s for certain: When it came to testaments, D’Marco knew his stuff.
A serious condition, AA can develop at any age. Aplastic anemia may occur suddenly, or it can occur slowly and get worse over a long period of time. Treatment for it may include medications, blood transfusions or a stem cell transplant, also known as a bone marrow transplant.
Aplastic anemia is rare, and sadly for D’Marco, it limited his chances of finding a transplant match that might have saved his life.
Again, a little dark in thought, but a true reality for anyone hoping for a life-saving chance on bethematch.org, the website that links volunteers to needy donors. And those who knew D’Marco are doing their best to keep donation a hot top in the community and beyond.
D’Marco’s legacy is his story and his advocacy for the donation of bone marrow. His testament is both how he wanted to be remembered and how he left his mark on this world:
“Live every day like you don’t have another one.”
Now, that’s a pretty simple answer to a sometimes over-complicated question.
