remember the school where I studied, in spite of being parochial, I received a good education and 9 years I was assigned the task of making a report about AIDS. Ever since I was pretty informed on the subject and at home we saw documentaries and special programs about the school and, yes, in the parish school and high school where I studied, always gave us lectures on sexual orientation and that included the topic of AIDS and prevention.
Despite knowing about this disease I tended to see far away, something was wrong to others but never happen in my environment.
In my family there was a womanizing uncle, the uncle who had two girlfriends "formal" and also took the time to have "air Canitas" Uncle Charlie.
One day Uncle Charlie started to get sick very often, had a cough that got worse each time, began to lose weight and looked pretty haggard. A "small" family informed us that Uncle Charles had "stomach cancer" but that he was receiving treatment.
special gelatins, which he had to eat in fridge in the grandparents' house, the pile of bottles of pills and I also remember the "tension in the air when the guy was close," the note of mystery always suspended in the air.
A couple of years, Uncle Charlie had improved a lot in that time but suddenly fall again, this time seemed to be more aggressive. One day my parents brought us together me and my brother felt that day when we had a right to know the truth, "his uncle Carlos did not have cancer, your Uncle Charlie has AIDS so we want to know what precautions have but we do feel comfortable. Remember that is not spread by being around him, hug him, hold his hand (...) and now that I know the most important thing is DO NOT tell anyone, THAT MUST BE BETWEEN U.S.. "
That became the elephant that was in the room but that no one spoke.
Uncle waned, he was so thin that it hurt look and his eyes were so sad, so empty as if someone had stolen the soul ( if there is such thing as soul), he was finally killed by a terrible pneumonia, I remember I was very afraid of dying and my brother had to help him relax until he breathed his last breath.
died surrounded by his family, had never afraid to hug him, take his hand, trying to make you feel comfortable and secure because we knew no one outside would. Although we all knew why that had been fulminating pneumonia that was always a taboo subject for the "outs" My Uncle Charles died of cancer that started in the stomach and then metastasized.
Thinking about this close and very personal story, I feel very angry that damned taboo AIDS remains, if someone happens to be suffering from the bug infecting everyone fears, if someone has AIDS it's like should become a fearsome monster, the noted, the trial for his sins. But it can happen to any of us, we are all exposed and all are responsible to prevent it, we are all responsible for combating a pest such as AIDS. The first step is to continue the struggle to break the taboo that still exists, which is not a shame that people who live this nightmare can receive medical, psychological, and that society does not exclude them.
I remember before I was too embarrassed to say I had an uncle who suffered from AIDS because the few times I told him there was a terrible silence and scrutinizing eyes, I was going to be for a moment the "infectious bug."
It remains to be done so that the fight against AIDS is becoming stronger, so many people be educated, so that change in society so that we can properly speak of the elephant that is in the room and take "precautions" and "prevention" instead of feeling "terror."
If there is an afterlife from where my uncle can still look at us, do not feel sorry for having been a victim of AIDS and had to be taboo, as if he did something unforgivable and shameful. My uncle died about 18 years ago, was 35. The lack of information, believe "that happens to others and not me" and not be accountable for their actions and their "air Canitas" because they knew the damage it caused to itself and cause others to have unprotected sex (not just AIDS). There are not more like him, we are all informed, educated and prepared to prevent and not spread over the pest.
That is not to judge what others do because "everyone makes their ass a vase" but we are responsible, that we care and care for the lives of others.
Use condoms, stop AIDS!
my uncle Charlie small
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