stories

The following stories were contributed to our website. Please note that the stories have not been edited and is presented the way it was received.

My name is John. I do not have AIDS but my youngest son died of AIDS last year. I am 79 years old and we live in Auckland , New Zealand . . I have 7 children and my wife dies 6 years ago. All our children are grown up and live all over the world. Jimmy lived in Perth . He did not tell us anything about his disease to any of us .not until it was too late. He had full-blown AIDS. I also learnt for the first time that he was gay. I was shocked. My oldest daughter Rachel took me to Perth. I was so tensed; I could not get there soon enough. He died before we got there. I was not there for him when he needed me. I will never know what his last thoughts were. I do not know how long he had known. He always stayed distant and never visited us very often. He said his job was very demanding. But he would always call.and talk for hours. I think he did not want us to see him, to see how the disease had plagued him. If anyone is reading this please ask for support - you should share your sickness with your family. Give them an opportunity to support you, to take care of you. There is no need to struggle alone. I truly wish Jimmy had told us about his illness. I cannot stop wondering if we could have done anything to prolong his stay in this world.

John, New Zealand.

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