ADD ME Can two words typed over the internet from a total stranger on the other side of the planet change your life? Can five letters of a symbolic code change ones perspective? The outcome ironic in many ways. The choice in hindsight immediate. The click of the mouse on the “add as friend” as historic a moment as I will ever experience. As I scrolled the names of comments on a fish game on facebook, one stood out. The profile picture Freddy Kruger the name Kabeer Khan. The irony of this persona did not escape me. In the weeks to come there were gifts of fish given, aquariums visited. For every gift, I received a thoughtful acknowledgment. After one particularly heartfelt thank you, I visited his profile. His profile statement~I am hemophiliac from birth at Fatimid. You must help us. It listed the country as Pakistan. I then followed a link to a group. This explained that Fatimid was a hospital for poor people with blood disorders. I sat and read that statement over and over. You must help us! The desperation even at this moment brings tears to my eyes. No question, no option. Pure desperation. The choice so clear in this young mans mind. This statement so deliberate, became a mantra in my head. What could make a situation so urgent, to demand? After a day or so of pondering these questions, and getting up the nerve to speak to someone that would put a serial killer on their profile I sent a chat message. I said hello. I asked how I could help. I offered to make an American page for Fatimid to show support. In minutes, I was an Admin on his group. Accepted without question as someone who was sincere. At this moment, my life changed for ever. My perception of the world, the internet, what possibilities were out there that I have never considered, everything changed. In one moment two peoples lives would never be the same. In seemingly one moment a bond was formed. A thread of love, hope, and caring was without knowing about to sew the most beautiful tapestry imaginable. What I found was an incredible humanity fostered by desperation. A family locked in a daily struggle. Not for what we would consider basic needs, but for a need at an even more vital level. Blood. Broken down even further one component of blood. A component that all four brothers in this family need from outside sources to survive. In a country that faces struggles on a daily basis that we in the west can only see in our nightmares. I found a mother. A loving, caring mother, who through struggles I think I will never know. Brought up 4 productive, loving boys. Boys who do not wallow in self pity. Boys who work hard to make their parents proud, and to make Pakistan a better place. I found a father who worked 2 jobs to put his children through school. I found without knowing at the time, a family. Sons I never dreamt I would have. A sister so dear I long to meet. I found people I miss everyday, without ever knowing. And in the process I found ME.
Susan Webb
ADD ME Can two words typed over the internet from a total stranger on the other side of the planet change your life? Can five letters of a symbolic code change ones perspective? The outcome ironic in many ways. The choice in hindsight immediate. The click of the mouse on the “add as friend” as historic a moment as I will ever experience. As I scrolled the names of comments on a fish game on facebook, one stood out. The profile picture Freddy Kruger the name Kabeer Khan. The irony of this persona did not escape me. In the weeks to come there were gifts of fish given, aquariums visited. For every gift, I received a thoughtful acknowledgment. After one particularly heartfelt thank you, I visited his profile. His profile statement~I am hemophiliac from birth at Fatimid. You must help us. It listed the country as Pakistan. I then followed a link to a group. This explained that Fatimid was a hospital for poor people with blood disorders. I sat and read that statement over and over. You must help us! The desperation even at this moment brings tears to my eyes. No question, no option. Pure desperation. The choice so clear in this young mans mind. This statement so deliberate, became a mantra in my head. What could make a situation so urgent, to demand? After a day or so of pondering these questions, and getting up the nerve to speak to someone that would put a serial killer on their profile I sent a chat message. I said hello. I asked how I could help. I offered to make an American page for Fatimid to show support. In minutes, I was an Admin on his group. Accepted without question as someone who was sincere. At this moment, my life changed for ever. My perception of the world, the internet, what possibilities were out there that I have never considered, everything changed. In one moment two peoples lives would never be the same. In seemingly one moment a bond was formed. A thread of love, hope, and caring was without knowing about to sew the most beautiful tapestry imaginable. What I found was an incredible humanity fostered by desperation. A family locked in a daily struggle. Not for what we would consider basic needs, but for a need at an even more vital level. Blood. Broken down even further one component of blood. A component that all four brothers in this family need from outside sources to survive. In a country that faces struggles on a daily basis that we in the west can only see in our nightmares. I found a mother. A loving, caring mother, who through struggles I think I will never know. Brought up 4 productive, loving boys. Boys who do not wallow in self pity. Boys who work hard to make their parents proud, and to make Pakistan a better place. I found a father who worked 2 jobs to put his children through school. I found without knowing at the time, a family. Sons I never dreamt I would have. A sister so dear I long to meet. I found people I miss everyday, without ever knowing. And in the process I found ME.
Susan Webb
