One of the nurses' aids that I work with dropped a bomb on me today in the middle of our ward rounds. Off-handed and super casually she tells me that she left her ARV's at home today by accident and that she needs me to get her a few tablets out of our emergency spare stock of ARV's.
ARV's... meaning the medication that treats HIV.
Meaning that she had just told me that she has HIV.
"What? You need me to get you what?" I thought maybe I had misunderstood.
"ARV's... I left mine at home and I need them."
No big deal to her. She just needed some spare medication.
She just told me she has a life ending disease. That's all.
I cried the whole way to the cabinet to get the meds out of the spare box.
"Lord, no. Not one of my own. It can't be. Are you kidding me? No. How does this happen? What am I supposed to do about it?"
Someone I love. Someone I care about. Someone who has a six year old daughter.
Someone I work with side-by-side every single day.
We share space and meals and time together. We hold hands and pray together. We laugh together. We read the paper together. We talk about TV and hairstyles and other meaningless things all day long.
And now this. This news in the middle of everything.
This is serious. Really serious.
Her profession is to care for people eveyday that have HIV. She watches them die of it's complications all the time and yet, she is sick herself.
After all that she does for others, she has to do for herself.
After all of the care she invests in others, she has to care for herself.
1 in 3 South Africans are infected with HIV.
I guess it just hurts more when it's the one that belongs to you.
Cried as I read your blog today, Amy...sad but thankful. Mourning yet praising Him. I don't 'get' His ways, but they're higher than mine. And we surrendered our lives to Him long ago...no place for taking them back again. You are continually in my prayers. Love you, girl.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4
"All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort.He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us."