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Posts tagged ‘#sparearose’

Feb 14

A Valentine For My Pancreas.

(A post from the past, but still relevant, as my pancreas remains lazy.)

Oh rotting, feeble pancreas of mine,
Won’t you be my Valentine?
Won’t you wake from your long sleep
And make some insulin, you creep?

What makes you sit, all shaped like a wiener,
Lazy and dull, with a pompous demeanor?
What makes it okay, that for your enjoyment
You’ve spent twenty plus years filing unemployment?

We need to start over; we need to be friends.
We need this whole type 1 diabetes to end.
I’m tired of shots and I’m sick of the lows,
So I think we should talk about ending this row.
I could use a break, my corn-cob-shaped friend.
I’d love to have ‘old age’ listed as my end.
I think that your time off has drawn to a close.
I’d like working islets, and plenty of those.

How ’bout it, old pal? Care to start working?
Care to start minding duties you’ve been shirking?
I promise to be an attentive best friend,
I’ll thank you each morning and as the day ends.
I won’t take for granted the hormone you make
And I’ll forgive you for the last 25 years’ mistake.

I’ve brought you some flowers and a Border’s gift card,
In hopes that when I bring milkshakes to the yard
You’ll be so inclined to jump start all those islets
Who’ve been holding their breath for so long that they’re violet.

So what do you say, oh pancreas of mine?
Won’t you be my Valentine?

(Celebrate Valentine’s Day with your rotten old pancreas by sparing a rose.)

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Happy Flowerless Valentine’s Day: Spare a Rose. Bionic Pancreas Update and Call to Action. Pizza (A Christmas Poem).

Feb 8

7 Comments

Spare a Rose.

I’ve been writing this website for almost twelve years.  The support, advice, and camaraderie I’ve found in the diabetes online community has made the last twelve years with type 1 diabetes among my healthiest and most successful.  The supply of insulin carefully tucked away in my fridge, along with access to an excellent medical team and the financial means to manage my disease, keep me alive.

I’m lucky.  In a lot of ways.

Today is my birthday.  The greatest gift I can have is another year of life, and I don’t take that for granted.  If you’ve found hope, or support, or joy, or friendship, or love in the diabetes online community, I’d really appreciate it if you would consider donating to the IDF’s Life for a Child campaign through Spare a Rose.  If you aren’t able to donate, would you mind sharing the donation link?

Flowers die.  Children shouldn’t.  Every small donation helps save a child.

 

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Spare a Rose 2016: Final Totals. Spare a Rose, Save a Child. Spare a Rose 2016

Feb 1

2 Comments

Looking to make a difference? Here’s how.

Scrolling through a newsfeed these days can be downright painful.  There’s not a lot of happiness or success being highlighted, and that can take a toll on your mental health.  What can you do to make a difference?

There is something you can do.  Something you can do this minute.  And your actions have the power to save the life of a child.

Today marks the beginning of the Spare a Rose campaign, which runs every February 1 -14th.  The idea?  Instead of buying a dozen roses for your loved one, buy 11 and take the value of that spared rose – about $5 – and donate it to IDF’s Life for a Child program.

“Living with type 1 diabetes can be challenging wherever you live, but in some countries lifesaving insulin, management tools and education are entirely unaffordable or even unavailable. Life for a Child partners with diabetes centres in these countries to supply young people with these vital components for life. We are working towards the vision: No Child Should Die of Diabetes.

The program commenced in 2000 and currently supports over 18,000 young people living with type 1 diabetes. In 20 of the 42 countries where we work, we have the resources to help every diagnosed child. With your support, we can achieve this in all 42.”  – LFAC website

I looked in my fridge this morning and saw three months worth of life-saving insulin sitting there, all casual, in my butter compartment.  Seeing that stash of insulin made me feel lucky.  So I spared a rose.

And I hope you will, too.

 *   *   *

You can participate in the Spare a Rose campaign by sharing the donation link, spreading the word on social media (use the hashtag #sparearose), and asking folks in your family, neighborhood, and office to consider joining the efforts.  Thank you for helping make this campaign a success and for taking care of our diabetes community both here at home and across the globe.

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Spare a Rose 2016: Final Totals. Spare a Rose, Save a Child. Official Spare a Rose Totals.

Feb 25

Spare a Rose 2016: Final Totals.

In 2016 the diabetes community, both online and off, made a huge difference for children with type 1 diabetes in developing countries.  This year’s Spare a Rose campaign raised $25,331 from 537 donations, saving 422 children.

Read that again, please?

Four hundred and twenty-two children.

Through the endless generosity of people in this community, donating their time to share the message, their ability to rally support, and their willingness to give both emotionally and financially, we helped save the lives of 422 children.

Since the beginning of the Spare a Rose campaign back in 2013, we’ve directly influenced the lives of 1,422 children in 36 countries.  This is a big deal.  Each number in that 1,422 represents a single kid, no longer struggling for access.  Imagine if that were your kid.  Imagine if that were you.

Thank you to the companies who participated and matched donations, who shared it with their employees, and who threw their social media muscle behind the effort.  Thank you to the individual members of the DOC who, far and wide, shared the donation link and their reasons for believing.  Thank you to Life for a Child for providing a way for small change to make a big difference.

And thank YOU.  This campaign is effective because everyone owns it, and everyone benefits from it.  The lives of these children are improved because of you.  You shared the donation link.  You told your coworkers.  You reached into your own pocket and spared five dollars.  Every voice matters.

The difference we made as a community, for our community, is because of you.

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Official Spare a Rose Totals. Spare a Rose 2016 Spare a Rose, Save a Child.

Feb 12

5 Comments

A Rose By Any Other Name …

Sunday is Valentine’s Day, and marks the end of this year’s Spare a Rose, Save a Child campaign.

There’s lots of love going around this weekend; will you share your affections in a way that will last all year?

Flowers end up in the garbage can.  Fancy dinners are digested.  And chocolates, ironically, require a hefty dose of insulin.    Donating to Spare a Rose makes your gift of love last all year, and provides life for a child.  This is not a joke.  This matters.

Your five dollar donation can save someone’s life.  How often does five dollars go that far?

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Spare a Rose 2016 Spare a Rose. Spare a Rose, Save a Child.
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