My name is Rafael, the Red Blood Cell, doctors call me erythrocyte and born in the bone marrow. My shape is bi-concave disk. Also do not possess a nucleus. I am one of trillions of red blood cells that live inside and travel through your body. I deliver oxygen to all the organs and tissues and transport wastes as carbon dioxide out of your body. Oxygen helps keep the body running and healthy. I tend to jump aboard the train inside the heart.
The trip around the body only takes 45 seconds! Now that’s pretty fast don’t you think? A lub-dub, lub-dub sends me out the left half of the hearth the aorta. I am bright red because I am full of oxygen. But I make a lot of stops which tends to be a hustle. I carry oxygen to Bob the Brain, Samuel the Spleen, Leonidas Liver, Kendrick Kidney, Isaac Intestine, and Tupac Tissue. When I’m done, I look more blue than red because I’m low on oxygen.
Now that’s a lot of stops to transport and deliver the special package to everybody. So back I go through the veins to the right half of the heart. From there, I am pumped into the lungs to collect more oxygen. Then zip back to the left side of the heart and start my trip again. Every day, I ride the train around your body! But about the 120th day I’m old, at the end of my life and I go to my last resting place the liver or the spleen and I’m dissolve and recycle for future generations of Red Blood Cells.
