Compulsory Volunteering

I was asked by a friend yesterday if I was comfortable giving blood, and if so, would I be interested in coming with them to donate to the Red Cross. After a few seconds of getting my mind wrapped around this unusual question, I said yes, I'll do my part! (This may be the ex-girlscout/brownie in me coming out) So I went dutifully to help out the Red Cross, got in the little exam room, had my finger mercilessly poked and squeezed over and over to produce a drop of blood for testing purposes, then found out my iron was too low. Bummer. This is not how I thought this would go. I thought I would be a part of the grand scheme, helping some poor soul that needed MY blood to survive some emergency surgery. But no, I failed the test. The nurse did tell me that this is common for women, and can be influenced by several factors. So my volunteering effort was stopped short, and then I had to face the friend who was already strapped in and doing their part, and explain why I hadn't made the cut. I will try again when my iron is at acceptable levels - bring on the vitamins and protein diet.
Red Cross Blood Donation info:http://www.redcross.org/donate/give/