If I see and hear, do I know? - Reflections from the AIDS Quilt

Last night, after weeping in my wife's arms as I thought about the death of my father, I went to sleep, slumbering away the tears, knowing the pain would be softer overnight. As I was praying with students in the HUB at IUP, I watched people move into a room that held sections of the Aids Quilt. After finishing the corporate prayer, I chose to move through the room with the quilts. Names were being spoken softly as people trod silently through the exhibit. Boxes of tissues on the ground were ready to catch falling tears, and I found myself revisiting my pain, although it was for others, not for myself this time.

Feeling what I did made me wonder if what I was feeling was real. Do I know the pain these people go through? Does seeing the pictures, the words, the articles from life give me insight into the losses? Does hearing the names being read and the sobs from the corners help me understand what is happening?

The AIDS Quilt is a powerfully personal demonstration of the loss of humanity through a horrible disease that is devastating the world. I urge any readers of this to visit the aids quilt, see the faces, read the words of longing that are written, and reflect on what you feel. Many people have died and are dying of AIDS, and they are humans like you and I, and the AIDS Quilt bring you closer to caring and understanding the sadness of life that exists with a terminal disease, especially if you ever meet someone who is HIV or AIDS positive.

Grace and peace to everyone,
DEW