The Role of the Heart

When a person dies, the last organ to shut down is the heart. History has so often depicted the heart as a fragile thing yet it’s the last thing to keep us truly alive. A braindead patient can be kept alive by machines. You only need one kidney to live. The benefits of a thyroid can be supplemented with medicine. The appendix is widely deemed as more of a burden than helpful. Even the lungs, an organ that gives us the ability to breathe, such an innate part of being alive is one of the first to shut down when one is in the process of dying.

A heart plays a difficult role. The heart has the responsibility of keeping us human. Our brain keeps us humble while our hearts keep us grounded. Anatomically the heart has four chambers; emotionally the heart has sections too. Everyone you have ever cared for, every hobby you have ever loved, your favorite song, your pet, your favorite food, your favorite television show, all of it has had a piece of your heart at one point in time. The important part about it is that you can’t run out of pieces. No matter how many breakups you face, failures you have endured, or wrong paths you feel like you have taken. You must remember the heart is a muscle and not a bone. It is impossible for it to fully shatter and have the pieces scattered- unable to be collected.

We live in a society that is so often afraid to feel. How many times have I thought to myself, “I am too sensitive for this world”? How many people have called me a crybaby behind my back? How many people have done me wrong? Why does it matter? Keeping track will only solidify my stone heart. I made a promise to my younger self. I will not succumb to the hostility of the world. I will not make others feel the way they have made me feel. Growing up, I quickly learned to bottle up my feelings because crying in public is not socially appropriate. Now I love sad movies because I have forgotten how to cry. Maybe someday someone will come along to ease my guarded heart. Or maybe not. I promise to keep working on thawing my heart out. I will become a gentler; more understanding person. I will become someone who doesn’t hold grudges. In the midst of it all, I will become someone who realizes that emotions and feelings are what make us human. The heart is our most indomitable organ.

While broken heart syndrome is real, it is all the same rare. Most people recover. We must not underestimate the heart. The heart wants us alive, even when we don’t want to be. We often think it’s safer to follow our brains, but the heart beats approximately 100,000 times per day and pumps 2,000 gallons of blood on top of that. The heart works overtime even when we turn off our brains. The heart has the job of supplying us with blood from our heads down to our tippy toes. Our brain is important but without our hearts’ we wouldn’t be here. Our heart makes up who we are. Even when we are done using our heart, and we donate it to someone in need, it is still an integral part of us, it’s just helping someone out for a little bit. That’s just who the heart is. Our heart is our biggest supporter. It cheers for us on from the top of the stadium stands. So the next time you think you feel too much, remember it’s okay to cry. The heart is just doing its job.