A sad story

A friend sent this to me- its so sad, but it really makes you think. Hope y'all like it.

The day is over, you are driving home. You tune in your radio. You hear a littleblurb about a little village in India where some villagers have died suddenly,strangely, of a flu that has never been seen before. It's not influenza, butthree or four people are dead, and it's kind of interesting, and they're sendingsome doctors over there to investigate it. You don't think much about it, but on Sunday, coming home from church, you hearanother radio spot. Only they say it's not three villagers, it's 30,000villagers in the back hills of this particular area of India, and it's on TVthat night. CNN runs a little blurb; people are heading there from the diseasecenter in Atlanta because this disease strain has never been seen before. By Monday morning when you get up, it's the lead story. For it's not just India;it's Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, and before you know it, you're hearing thisstory everywhere and they have coined it now as "the mystery flu." The Presidenthas made some comment that he and everyone are praying and hoping that all willgo well over there. But everyone is wondering, How are we going to contain it? That's when the President of France makes an announcement that shocks Europe. Heis closing their borders. No flights from India, Pakistan, or any of thecountries where this thing has been seen. And that's why that night you arewatching a little bit of CNN before going to bed. Your jaw hits your chest whena weeping woman is translated from a French news program into English: There's aman lying in a hospital in Paris dying of the mystery flu. It has come toEurope. Panic strikes. As best they can tell, once you get it, you have it for a week before you knowit. Then you have four days of unbelievable symptoms. And then you die. Britain closes its borders, but it's too late. South Hampton, Liverpool, NorthHampton, and its Tuesday morning when the President of the United States makesthe following announcement: "Due to a national security risk, all flights to andfrom Europe and Asia have been canceled. If your loved ones are overseas, I'msorry. They cannot come back until we find a cure for this thing," Within four days our nation has been plunged into an unbelievable fear. Peopleare selling little masks for your face. People are talking about "What if itcomes to this country," and preachers on Tuesday are saying, "it's the scourgeof God." It's Wednesday night and you are at a church prayer meeting whensomebody runs in from the parking lot and says, "Turn on a radio, turn on aradio." And while the church listens to a little transistor radio with amicrophone stuck up to it, the announcement is made: "Two women are lying in aLong Island hospital dying from the mystery flu." Within hours it seems, this thing just sweeps across the country. People areworking around the clock trying to find an antidote. Nothing is working.California, Oregon, Arizona, Florida, Massachusetts. It's as though it's justsweeping in from the borders. And then, all of a sudden the news comes out. The code has been broken. A curecan be found. A vaccine can be made. It's going to take the blood of somebodywho hasn't been infected, and so, sure enough, all through the Midwest, throughall those channels of emergency broadcasting, everyone is asked to do one simplething: Go to your downtown hospital and have your blood type taken. That's allwe ask of you. When you hear the sirens go off in your neighborhood, please makeyour way quickly, quietly, and safely to the hospitals. Sure enough, when you and your family get down there late on that Friday night,there is a long line, and they've got nurses and doctors coming out and prickingfingers and taking blood and putting labels on it. Your wife and your kids areout there, and they take your blood type and they say, "Wait here in the parkinglot and if we call your name, you can be dismissed and go home." You stand around, scared, with your neighbors, wondering what in the world isgoing on and if this is the end of the world. Suddenly a young man comes running out of the hospital screaming. He's yelling aname and waving a clipboard. What? He yells it again! And your son tugs on yourjacket and says, "Daddy, that's me." Before you know it, they have grabbed yourboy. Wait a minute. Hold on! And they say, "It's okay, his blood is clean. Hisblood is pure. We want to make sure he doesn't have the disease. We think he hasgot the right type." Five tense minutes later, out come the doctors and nurses,crying and hugging one another - some are even laughing. It's the first time youhave seen anybody laugh in a week, and an old doctor walks up to you and says,"Thank you, sir. Your son's blood type is perfect. It's clean, it is pure, andwe can make the vaccine." As the word begins to spread all across that parking lot full of folks, peopleare screaming and praying and laughing and crying. But then the gray-haireddoctor pulls you and you wife aside and says, "May we see you for a moment? Wedidn't realize that the donor would be a minor and we need...we need you to signa consent form." You begin to sign and then you see that the number of pints of blood to be takenis empty. "H-how many pints?" And that is when the old doctor's smile fades andhe says, "We had no idea it would be a little child. We weren't prepared. Weneed it all!" "But-but...You don't understand." "We are talking about the world here. Pleasesign. We-we need it all!" "But can't you give him a transfusion?" "If we had clean blood we would. Can you sign? Would you sign?" In numb silence,you do. Then they say, "Would you like to have a moment with him before webegin?" Can you walk back? Can you walk back to that room where he sits on a tablesaying, "Daddy? What's going on?" Can you take his hands and say, "Son, you knowI love you, and I would never ever let anything, happen to you that didn't justhave to be. Do you understand that?" And when that old doctor comes back in and says, "I'm sorry, we've - we've gotto get started. People all over the world are dying." Can you leave? Can you walk out while he is saying, "Dad? Dad? Why - why haveyou forsaken me?" And then next week, when they have the ceremony to honor your son, and somefolks sleep through it, and some folks don't even come because they go to thelake, and some folks come with a pretentious smile and just pretend to care.Would you want to jump up and say, "MY SON DIED FOR YOU! DON'T YOU CARE?" Is that what GOD wants to say? "MY SON DIED FOR YOU. DON'T YOU KNOW HOW MUCH ICARE?" "Father, seeing it from your eyes breaks our hearts. Maybe now we can begin tocomprehend the great Love you have for us."