We are humans and we should help each other out.
An Israeli kindergarten teacher and a mother of three kids did something that none of us would on our 50th birthday.
Idit Harel Segal said she wanted to do something meaningful for her 50th birthday.
So instead of giving someone a present, the mother of 3 kids decided to donate a kidney to someone that actually needs it.
In memory of her late grandfather, Segal said she gave a kidney to a 3-year-old boy from Palestine.
Although right now there are a number of strict restrictions in place when it comes to handing out entry permits into the country, there were some good people that wanted good things to happen.
Matnat Chaim, a Jerusalem-based nongovernmental organization, managed to arrange a surgical procedure on humanitarian grounds.
A permit was handed out to allow the little boy to head of the donor list in Gaza after the father also agreed to donate a kidney to an Israeli patient, a 25-year-old mother of 2.
The surgery was schedule for June 16, 2021.
Before it happened, Segal said she wanted to make sure that the little kid would know how much giving this particular gift meant for her.
To make that happen, the woman sent him a letter.
She said in the letter:
You don’t know me… You don’t understand my language and I don’t understand yours, but soon we’ll be very close because my kidney will be in your body. I hope with all my heart that this surgery will succeed and you will live a long and healthy and meaningful life.
In the hospital, Segal met with the little boy and his mother.
The mother and the donor sat right next to the little kid on his hospital bed and as the mother comforted her son, Segal reportedly sang to him until he fell asleep.
During an interview with AP (Associated Press), the mother said:
He fell asleep, then I left. I cried. It was really moving. Deep inside I knew I did something good.
When she was asked if her family supported her actions, she said that everyone in her family were not supportive of her plan in the beginning.
Talking about her act, she said:
I threw away the anger and frustration and see only one thing. I see hope for peace and love. And if there will be more like us, there won’t be anything to fight over.
At one point, her family agreed and started to support him.
Right now, they are appreciating and embracing the choice that she had made.
This story is extremely special considering that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is one of the world’s most enduring conflicts.
Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip has reached a total of 54 years of conflict.
Despite numerous attempts to resolve the conflict, war is still raging.
