7 Principles of Blood for Life

As I studied blood, I was amazed at the lessons it offered about life. Here are 7 principles of blood that can teach us how to live more deeply and meaningfully.

In our first gross anatomy class, the smell of formaldehyde made me nauseous. For others, it was the idea of all the cadavers that we would cut open to study the parts of the body.

Thud! Thud!

A couple of medical students around me fainted. Why does blood have this effect on us? When it's inside our bodies, it symbolizes life and protection. When it's outside, we sense danger and the possibility of death.

Blood is more than life — it's also a bond. "Blood brothers." Our forefathers shed their blood for our freedom. Blood is the bridge between life and sacrifice.

1. Life is the narrow way

We came out into this world through a very small, narrow path from our mothers. Such is the way of life. Each is unique, each in its time. Similar but different. Don't try to be like others. Try to be more like yourself. Walk your narrow path that only you can walk. No one can walk it for you.

People can guide you, encourage you, and inspire you to walk your own narrow path. The broad path to conform and be like everyone else is a path to ordinary life without depth or genuine hardship that shapes you into who you truly are.

That narrow way was painful, full of labour and birth pangs. Your mother went through it with you as she delivered you. Mother nature will deliver you, too, if you trust her and follow your heart.

2. Life sacrifices

I was curious about how many red blood cells (RBC) we had.

It's 20 trillion. Wow!

They account for 80% of the cells in our bodies. Why so many? They carry the oxygen from the air we breathe. There are 270 million hemoglobin per RBC, carrying eight oxygen atoms each... Unfathomable! 

But did you know that each RBC sacrifices itself for every other cell in your body? They lose their nucleus — the blueprint for life — to deliver oxygen, required to produce energy, to every other cell in our body. That's why RBCs look like donuts--no fat nucleus in the middle. 

RBCs deliver oxygen in tiny blood vessels called capillaries that are 5 micrometres wide. At 8 micrometres wide, RBCs normally wouldn't 'fit', but because they have no nucleus, they are flexible and can 'bend' into the capillaries. They sacrifice to serve all the other cells in your body.

Without oxygen, we would lose our life in just 5 minutes.

Imagine giving up a part of yourself so that others may thrive. That's a sacrifice without ego, a lesson in humility and service. This is a transcending life.

3. Life flows

Blood must flow for human life to continue. Once blood stops, clots form, leading to strokes or heart attacks.

The business analogy to blood is cash. Cash flow is essential for a business's life. Like water, it flows from areas of abundance to need and then back to abundance. The rich who give to the poor and where there is need receive more in return. But cash is even more valuable with intangible wealth like health, love, and the human spirit.

For our bodies, we call the 'extreme' version of flow exercise. The 'accessible' version we call 'movement'. The 'standard' version we call walking and stretching. Move and flow to be nourished and grow. It is the same for the soul and spirit.

4. Life removes toxicity

Imagine if we had no toilets, sewage, garbage trucks or landfills. While the life-giving nourishment of oxygen in our blood is essential, removing waste is just as essential. 

A basic form of waste in the human body is carbon dioxide, which we breathe out. During the pandemic, I was running with an N95 mask. As I arrived at the restaurant to reserve a table for my family, I fainted — too much carbon dioxide built up, and I was breathing in my CO₂ for ten-ish minutes.

To remove toxicity from your mind, rid yourself of negative thoughts, regrets, and worry. Rid your spirit of sin and anger in your relationships. Purify your being from the inside out.

5. Life protects

We also have white blood cells (WBC), which are part of our immune system. They protect us from foreign invaders like viruses, bacteria, and parasites that can infect our bodies. Some are memory cells that produce antibodies — guards who remember the 'most wanted list'. Others are natural killer cells that act like assassins, taking out dangerous intruders.

We have so many bacteria in our bodies — in our guts, skin and mouths. Our immune system has learned how to live symbiotically with other organisms inside our bodies, and the wise have learned to do so with nature.

Heed the lessons of our immune system. Can we protect and serve our fellow humans and find ways to make peace and forgive instead of exact revenge and war?

Read on for the next two principles of life lessons from your blood and my life lessons then and now (only a few minutes more). I hope it will help you in your life today.