You wouldn’t turn away from a child crying in pain. And having seen the pain Archer Irwin lives with, you wouldn't turn away from him.
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We need to see and to hear the reality of life as, and with, a very sick child.
We don't want to think that any child could be dealt such a rough hand.
It's overwhelming, it's confronting, it's something we don't like to consider because we know it could happen to any of us.
It still could be any of us - a car crash, a freak accident, an undiagnosed illness bubbling inside - the world is chaotic, undiscriminating and often cruel.
'There but for the grace of God go I.'
It's easier to turn away from little Archer's face and pretend we live in a world where children don't feel pain.
It's easier to feel we can't fix the chaos and to focus on our own lives.
But Nikki and Archer don't have the privilege of closing the door to suffering.
Pain and injustice are part of their everyday lives.
And we can't look away.
IN OTHER NEWS:
The sad reality is very few people are viable organ donors, a number significantly limited by the lack of Australians and their families consenting to donation.
Of the 78,525 people who died in Australian hospitals last year, only 2 to 3 per cent were suitable to be organ donors.
Of these, 1118 requests were made to families and 716 consented to donating their loved ones organs.
But even then, the organs of only 554 people ended up being able to be donated.
For Archer to have a chance at growing up, of living a life outside of hospital visits and sick beds, he needs people to see his pain and to act.
He and many others need them to sign up to be organ donors and to have an uncomfortable conversation about death, so when the time comes their family knows what to do.
Archer doesn't have a choice to avoid discomfort.
We can't ignore him or the thousands of other children and adults like him in need of an organ transplant.
We should choose to have the tough conversations. http://donatelife.gov.au/
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