The Littlest Things Can Mean the Most

Posted on by Paul Turek, MD

Banking on the Future
A way to freeze sperm or eggs…on us!

Did you ever notice how the smallest things can make your day? Think of all of the things you do every single day, some by habit and some by intent. Realize that any one of them can make your day, if you let it. Join me for a moment in thinking small.

Double Dare

Read this list. It’s full of small things that can easily make your day. Surely, something on this list will make you smile:

  • The elevator arrives the second you push the button
  • Perfectly popped popcorn
  • Clicking “unsubscribe”
  • Watching puppies or kittens
  • Clean, folded laundry
  • Taking off your shoes at the end of the day
  • Getting mail that is not a bill
  • Waking up early on your day off and realizing that’s it’s your day off
  • Peeling a clementine in one piece
  • Getting to the subway just as the car arrives
  • The perfect shave
  • Getting off of work while it’s still light outside
  • The first sip of your favorite drink
  • Popping bubble wrap

Low Hanging Fruit

I had such a moment recently, but it wasn’t on this list. Davina Fankhauser and I started a non-profit program several years ago called Banking on the Future. In a word, it’s a way to pay for sperm (or egg) banking among teens with cancer. As I have said before, banking sperm (or eggs) before sterilizing cancer treatment is one of the purest forms of preventative medicine. It provides an opportunity for family building when cancer threatens to decimate the possibility.
Mind you, sperm banking is not new. But for teens with cancer it’s just not on their radar when the dreaded cancer hits. It costs money and there’s a bunch of paperwork that’s needed to make it happen. How do you even start? Enter Banking on the Future. We’ll seamlessly handle the details and defray the costs to eliminate these barriers to banking. Like a candle of hope in the dark.

Make My Day

Davina sent me an email that simply made my day. It was from a grateful mom whose son was recently diagnosed with cancer. It went like this:

“Thank you so much. I’m a single mom and this lifts such a weight off of me financially. I’m so happy that my son will have the choice to have children some day. Thank you again for your generosity.”

Short, simple, and lovely. Like perfectly popped popcorn. Please give today!