Today I ran into a guy dog walking I hadn’t seen since a blindingly bright day in January. We walked for miles, and our dogs were really happy running together. (His dog is a Whippet and mine is a Shepherd, and they cut quite a rug and make quite a team, I can tell you.) We spent a lot of time talking about attitude and fortitude that clear and crunchy day. I was fresh out of surgery and the hospital, upbeat about recovery, and grooving on the sunshine.
Struggles.
Today he tells me he was diagnosed with HIV in 1992 and has been off work since 1994. He was in on the early protease inhibitor trials and is now running out of options. He is looking toward the combination of two more experimental drugs but may ‘run out of time’ before they're approved and he can try them.
Trouble.
This guy laughs at traffic problems and thinks nothing of long lines, crowded stores, or any of life’s trivial little headaches. Today he exuded peace and acceptance, and was radiant with wide-open honesty. I’m fortunate that he decided to share his story with me, and hope in some small way I can be there for him in the future.
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