It is through narrative that my wife and I educate our children, as is the way most (if not all) parents do their jobs in this regard. The same can be said when educating the students in my various classes; a lesson only goes so far without an example of some sort to add significance and meaning.
It was the aftermath of Bryan Clauson’s death in Kansas last week that got me to thinking about the power of examples. It was reported, just a few days after his tragic accident and eventual demise at the Belleville Nationals USAC Midget race, that the 27-year old dirt-track star was an organ donor. It was Clauson’s personal wish to help others in need that led the 2010 USAC national champion to give the ultimate gift.
Bryan Clauson’s donation of his organs allowed five people to have an opportunity to enjoy a longer, better, and healthier life.
Maybe Clauson’s story struck me personally because I, too, am an organ donor. So is Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and many, many others who have decided to make such a pact so that other people – usually total strangers – might enjoy the benefit of having another chance at living. Becoming an organ donor is wildly simple, once you come to terms with the idea that what you have, and often take for granted, will be of no use to you once you die.
As the old adage goes: you can’t take it with you. So why not leave it behind to help those unable to help themselves?
Stories like Clauson’s provide a good example when trying to persuade others to take the steps necessary to become an organ donor. Not everyone is willing to fill out an application and submit it to their Secretary of State’s office. I have used the case for organ donation in my public speaking classes at the college where I teach. Since the subject is often met with varying levels of disagreement and disgust, I encourage my students to utilize an example of just how donation works. It’s one thing to disagree with a subject when you have little understanding of precisely how it functions, but it’s often another thing entirely when you demonstrate the benefits and advantages to be gained by making such a powerful decision and following it through.
In the scholarship of public speaking, we call this prompting your audience to take “immediate action”.
For over a decade now, I have used the story of a colleague at my college as a “real life” example in support of organ donation. This man was a beloved and respected philosophy instructor. Jim began his career as a priest, only to leave the church and follow a life of scholarship and education. He earned a number of advanced degrees, got married, and was hired to teach at the college where we both worked.
In was during an especially dark time at our college when I discovered the power of giving oneself, literally, to others. Another professor at our college had passed away suddenly from a heart attack. On the morning of the professor’s funeral, Jim sat down to breakfast, suffered a brain aneurism, and died. Jim, however, was an organ donor, so his brain-dead body was kept on life support until people on the national recipient list could be identified and notified.
Long story short: Jim’s choice to be an organ donor resulted in the saving of eight lives. Not only were adults provided with much-needed help, but so was a teenager whose diagnosis was terminal until the receipt of Jim’s final gift.
That narrative was often effective in its power to persuade, mainly because I could point to Jim’s name or refer to him as a friend and his legacy resonated with students. The situation with Bryan Clauson carries the same potential for influencing those who question the propriety of organ donation. Even though, in Clauson’s case, I did not know him as a friend, I can attest to his young age, his many accomplishments, his high regard amongst the finest drivers and car owners in the sport, and the generosity of his greatest gift: the gift of life that Bryan wanted to share with those in need.
It’s quite a story of selflessness. It’s also a good example of just what we can do to better the lives of others. It’s a lesson of triumph out of Bryan’s tragedy. I hope people learn that the greatest gift is in the act of giving.