Do you know anyone with HIV or Aids?

[damasa]

I was thinking about this the other night because I met a young girl a few weeks ago that tested positive for H.I.V.

Basically, she told me that since she had tested positive, many of the people in her life had disowned her. Most of her friends don't associate with her anymore, the majority of her family members don't want anything to do with her. She told me that she has her mother and one other friend. Her dad won't talk to her and her ex-bestfriend is scared to be around her.

That's really disturbing to me. And listening to this girl talk to me about living with this disease really made me think. I'm sitting here talking to this girl I've just met, shes only 19 years old, living with a deadly virus. She doesn't know how much longer she will live, and almost everyone around her is scared of her. I had tears in my eyes talking to her. Yet, she was so open, so happy about life. She was telling me how happy she was to be able to be alive and talk to me at that point.

It really made me think how much I take for granted in life. I couldn't even imagine living with a disease like aids. I mean, just knowing that the disease is going to eventually going to kill you, it's a lot to think about.

So, basically, do any of you know anyone living with HIV or aids? how do they view the life they are living now, and better yet, how do you view that person?

d