A Child’s Heartbeat Lives on in Song [LISTEN]
Until I draw my last breath, I will carry with me the memory of hearing my son's heartbeat for the first time. I was about seven weeks pregnant and at an appointment with my obstetrician when he asked if I wanted to hear my baby's heartbeat. The moment that I heard the beautiful singsong swishing, everything sunk in. What I was hearing was the sound of life and I vowed then and there that I would fight to the death for my child.
Someone told me once when I was pregnant that my son and I shared a bond that only a mother and her child can ever share and that is that my son is the only person who knows what my heartbeat sounds like from inside and outside my body. It really is incredible when you think about it.
There's something special about the sound of a heartbeat. It's comforting to hear that "blup dub blup dub" because that sound signifies life.
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is in the business of saving lives and incredibly, treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20% to more than 80% since the hospital opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude is changing the way that the world understands, treats, and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. They're so serious about irradicating childhood cancer that they don't hard their lifesaving medical discoveries, they actually freely share them with other medical outlets so that all children might also have a chance at surviving and thriving.
However, sometimes life is cruel and precious lives are snuffed out by cancer. At the time a child passes, their heartbeat might stop resonating from within their body, but at St. Jude, their heartbeat is able to live on in song for their parents long after their soul has left this earth.
Watch this to see how St. Jude Children's Research Hospital preserves the heartbeat of an angel who has earned their wings:
Would you like to help kids and their families under the care of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital? As a Partner In Hope, you’ll be joining a special community of monthly donors who’ve pledged to help save kids with cancer and other life-threatening diseases. When you become a Partner in Hope, your monthly donation ensures that families never receive a bill from St. Jude. And the best part? It's easy to give on your terms each month.
Join the movement now by calling 1-800-372-4999 or make a secure donation online here. All donations are tax-deductible.