09/12/2022
Today, we're sharing a couple of old photos of Stephen Griffin. These were taken 7 years ago in Red River Gorge, during a vacation with his wife (me) and son.
This was Stephen in his element. A week in an off-grid cabin, with no power, no running water, and no neighboring cabins close enough to interfere with each other. Even the pathway from the parking space for the car up to the cabin was a short, but steep, hike. It was a week of waking up with the sun and birds, packing trail bags, hiking and enjoying the scenery of the gorge for the day, and then watching the stars and enjoying a book before bed.
It was the trip when he started teaching our son how to move on trails. To keep pace with the adults, and move safely on his own without having to be guided by hand. Lessons our son still follows well, today.
It was also the trip when he proposed to his wife. In true Stephen fashion, it was a simple, quiet proposal, but it was absolutely perfect. I liked it enough to say yes, afterall.
These are memories we're going to carry for a long time. But they're also memories we can't currently make more of, because of Stephen's kidneys.
With the cysts in his kidneys, Stephen's in too much pain and too tired to go out like this anymore. Even on smoother trails and shorter hikes - which is far from the type of hiking he usually prefers - he just can't manage it most of the time.
But those earlier years made his son love to be outside on trails, just like him. The two of them would often leave me in the dust for bursts of time - somewhere between Stephen's long legs and our son's mantra of "Follow Daddy", I would always end up bringing up the rear. And I can't say I minded that, because I have a lot of little memories of watching the two of them forging on ahead together. Watching our son laugh and try to mimic everything Stephen did as he kept up with him, and watching Stephen look more and more relaxed as he got a much-needed recharge from everyday stresses.
These are the kinds of moments that we all miss. And they're the little moments we can have back, with a transplant.
When we talk about giving Stephen more time with his family and friends, and letting him have his quality of life back, this is a good example of what we mean. It's not just about giving him more years of life, but also about giving him back all these little things he's losing as his kidneys continue to decline.
It's giving him back the chance to teach his son how to navigate the woods the way Stephen has since he was a kid. Giving him back the chance to go on vacations with his family and be able to be active during them - to go see new places and make new memories together.
It's giving him back a walk in the woods.
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If you or someone you know is interested in becoming a living donor, you can access the donor registration for UC Health here:
https://uchealth.donorscreen.org/register/now
To read more of Stephen's story, you can visit the website here:
https://akidneyforstephen.wordpress.com
And if you have questions about becoming a living donor, you can read more from the National Kidney Foundation here:
https://www.kidney.org/transplantation/livingdonors
Whether or not you wish to become a donor yourself, to Stephen or to anyone else, Stephen's friends and family would appreciate it if you can share this post and page. Living donations change lives, and we would love to increase awareness of the process for everyone.
