|
|||
|
World AIDS Day Reflections So much work left to be done yet with each one helped, a battle is won. eKhaya eKasi stands as our proof of how many can be helped by simply providing a roof. But it is so much more - a light source in Khayelitsha shining as bright as the sun, we can celebrate for only a minute, because there is still so much work left to be done. -R. Steven Lewis _____ AIDS seems like such an intangible fear until someone you love is affected. In a moment where everything changes, you suddenly become more aware of your possessions and experiences, and how little materialistic items actually matter in the grand scheme of things. World AIDS day is a chance to acknowledge a very real threat for a large majority of the globe. This day of awareness is such an essential tool because it not only aligns faces and hearts with this experience, but also educates our society about a very misunderstood disease. How many more willing participants in the fight against AIDS would we have if we could breakdown all of the misconceptions surrounding those suffering from AIDS? If anything, this day is a day to support, grow, laugh and learn…while becoming an active member in the fight for change. -Sarah Colome ______ A thought on World AIDS Day, I teach an art class today which is mostly comprised of students under five years old. Since the kids are so young, I also have a lot of dedicated parents. This Monday afternoon class of mine is one of my favorite things to do. I'm surrounded by young faces full of hope and promise, and parents guiding the development of their children, leading them into life. Children are children, anywhere in the world. Loving parents are loving parents, anywhere in the world. Families in my class don't have the weight, the burden of HIV to contend with. I'm always struck by the strength and resilience of children, and adults in places heavily impacted by AIDS. They are more like the families that I teach than they are different. For a parent, the first concern is for the young ones, to do what ever is in their power to give them a fulfilled life. Children can glean joy from any situation. I'm getting ready to go to class now. I'll look again at those smiling faces, and I'll see smiling children all over the world. -Robert S. Hilton _____ I took your request very seriously but found myself in something of a quandary: I looked around (literally) and found that AIDs was less of a mortality problem than car accidents, drugs, and innumerable other diseases. We have people with AIDs in the county, and some of my friends are HIV positive, but cancers and accidents are far more prevalent. This is hopeful. AIDS was not even recognized until I was in my thirties. My children's generation is the first who knew about AIDs and sex from the time they hit puberty. While AIDs is still a huge problem in the US, it did not rage out of control the way it has in other countries. The difference is education. -Dew Harding |
|||
|
Art Aids Art promotes education and sustainable economic development through the arts.
We support cross-cultural exchanges between Americans and South Africans.
© 2006-2008 -- Art Aids Art -- All rights reserved.
CMS and CRM donated by manoto® great ideas, at work.