Look Who's Talking

A few weeks ago, I spoke publicly about my experiences at a local high school. I am not a confident speaker. Although I have no problems writing about my feelings, I have a very hard time sharing them out loud. I believe I am a good speech writer, but not a good speaker. I get very nervous as my heart pounds through my chest like a drum.

I spoke that day along with Robby Berman, head of the Halachic Organ Donor Society, to a class of 11^th and 12^th graders. Robby began the discussion by talking about organ donation in Jewish law. He then went on to discuss his viewpoint that donors should be monetarily compensated for their great sacrifice. Robby is a great speaker. He is funny and engaging as the students questioned and analyzed his talk. It was definitely a tough act to follow.

I spoke that day for the last ten minutes of class. I thanked the class for allowing me to join them and then spoke about my experiences, beginning with my diagnosis at 12 and ending with my transplant just a few weeks earlier. The class was amazing. They were extremely attentive and asked excellent questions. They made me, a shy and nervous speaker, feel comfortable and welcome.

This Saturday I spoke briefly at my synagogue. The people in my community have been amazing these past few months. Usually, one’s support group consists of their family and friends but I have been fortunate enough to have the entire community rally around me. And so, I felt that it was appropriate to thank them publicly. After services concluded, the Rabbi introduced me and I got up to speak. After thanking the Rabbi and his wife, I gave a short sermon:

The Talmud in Succah, when describing the proper height of a succah, says “MeOlam Lo Yardah Hashchinah LeMateh MeAsarah (G-d’s presence does not lie below ten lengths of a fist)” It is if that part of the physical world is devoid of G-d’s presence. And yet, it is specifically in this place that the Talmud tells us to place our Menorah on Hanukkah. Now, during the dark winter months, we light a candle and bring G-d’s presence down to a place that is normally devoid of Him.

At times, this past year has been extremely dark for me and my family, I have often felt devoid of G-d’s presence during these difficult times. But my family, friends, and the community at large have been the candle to lift me through this. They have helped me

1 of 2 1/25/2010 4:17 PM The Liver Spot http://www.theliverspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-12-22T12%3A...

get to this point and I want to thank all of you for that. Have a

Happy Hanukkah.

I hope to speak publicly again. I know I’ll be panicking beforehand but I’ll feel even better afterwards. It’s important for people to see that even a young person can get a liver transplant. And more importantly, that he can recover so soon afterwards.

POSTED BY YANNAI AT 5:58 PM 0 COMMENTS LABELS: ORGAN DONATION, POST TRANSPLANT, RELIGION, TRANSPLANT

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