WESTERN PROVINCE In most cases if we have children who are infected with HIV/AIDS at school or as our neighbors at home or perhaps in our community, as kids we tend not to associate with them and fear them. In most cases we forget that they are also little like us and need care and comfort more than anything else to help them live longer. Many times we talk about them, can’t share eats with them and we find that there is a large breach between us. Nyirahakizimana Hellene is a 14-year-old girl who has suffered an inferiority complex as a result of having the virus. She was born with HIV and has no parents because they died of HIV. Staying with her grandmother, who is very old, she fails to get full meals. Thanks to the Adventist Development and Relief Agency, Hellene gets medicine and food to keep her healthy. “I was given two hens that lay eggs and I get vegetables,” she says. But even though she gets the necessities, the ones she needs most is the love from friends. “When other kids are playing at school and they see me approaching, they either stop or shift to another place,” Hellene says with tears in her eyes. Many times they hate going back with her from Ngoma Primary School to Kigarama where she lives. After living with the virus since birth, Hellen would hope in life in case she had people to help her carry on but now as I speak, Hellene doesn’t dream of a living more than ten years ahead. However her dream is protecting other children from contracting HIV/AIDS so that they don’t suffer her problems. Kids, every child is equal and we all need love and care. Play with HIV-infected kids, share your sweets with them, appreciate them and give them comfort. Ends
