Natalie Cole: On Losing Her Sister As Her Life Is Saved By A Kidney Transplant

A true inspiration!

As Natalie Cole graces the holiday issue of AARP Magazine, the magazine for old folks, she looks back on her triumphs, losses and second chances due to her live-saving kidney transplant.

Here are some HIGHlights:

On surgery and losing her sister to lung cancer:
“This was a very joyous moment where I’ve got new life. It was also a very sorrowful moment, where my sister had gone on, and the family that donated the kidney had lost their daughter as well.”

On her greatest loss, sister Cookie:
“My first reaction was that I wished I were back on dialysis to have my sister. These two people had left this earth ├óΓé¼ΓÇ£ and I was here. Why? I feel like I don’t deserve it. I’ve lost some very special people, but Cookie is the toughest. There’s a part of me that’s missing now. I don’t expect that I will ever totally get over it.”

On losing hope:
“They told me the average wait for a kidney was three years. At first I thought, ‘There goes my
life.'”

On her current state:
“100 percent” healthy. “I didn’t know that I could feel this good again.”

On gratitude:
“Those angels on my shoulder who’ve been there all along ├óΓé¼ΓÇ£ now I know that my sister Cookie is one of them.”

Stay strong, bb!

P.S. Looking great!