The other day I took 11 children to an AIDS centre to be tested for HIV. They ranged in age from 9 to 6 months. For some of these children it was the first time they had met me. We plucked them out of their community, drove them the short distance to the clinic, & subjected them to an afternoon of waiting, not knowing what was going on, playing, a big painful needle, a lollipop, more waiting, being brought into a room to see a lady who showed them a pink piece of paper with a white sticker saying something they couldn't understand & certainly couldn't comprehend the significance of, some reassuring words, a hug, and a drive home.
I don't know if they will remember that afternoon in 10 years time, but I will. I don't know if they will remember my face, but I will remember theirs as the needle was stuck in their veins. Another off-road safari of experience and emotion.
They were all negative.
1 comment:
Flip, you sound like a travel writer! Was going to write an email today but hotmail is letting me down for some reason. Oh, the discomfort of living in the West.
Post a Comment