AIDS & WALKING THRU THE SPIRIT FIRE by Bonnie Blackwolf
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Planet Peace
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Bonnie Blackwolf, Blackfeet,is a human rights activist/ aids
activist, and P.W.A. (person with aids). She is currently working
in local and national communities to _confront and dissolve_ the
epidemic of fear and misinformation surrounding life threatening
health concerns which affect First Nations Peoples.
"I Don't Look Like Myself Today"
This column is intended to inspire anyone infected or affected by a life
threatening illness. In many ways there is no separation between these
illnesses other than the stigma the latest label carries and how much fear
we have invested in scaring ourselves to death. Desperation is desperation.
I am not an aids expert nor am I anyone who knows all the answers. Creator
reveals things when it is time and perhaps that is the hardest part of
living; having the faith that more will be revealed in Creators time not
mine.
My hope is to share some of my life experiences, insights, some humor,
speculate on some controversial treatment strategies, create dialog to
continue to break the silence that perpetrates genocide amongst our peoples,
and hopefully share some ideas that may be of support to anyone looking for
possible alternatives to white western treatment. As disease amongst
indigenous peoples is nothing new, we have never forgotten how it happened,
who brought it to us, and the lack of human compassion that continues to
oppress - as invisible people living under a dominate society - in most
cases does not give a flying rip whether or not we live or die, and just as
likely do not have a clue that they have destroyed the future of their own
life. Any how, I do not believe we have to be dependent on a dominate
culture or medicine to survive. We Have Our Own - May We Never Forget!!!
So..... All thoughts, ideas, going-ons, personal treatment strategies are
exclusively mine. They are in no way intended to prescribe treatment to
anyone. I will make every attempt to provide resource information as is
appropriate. In other words - My Brain On HIV! Oh, by the way, I am inspired
to write this because of my own disease. I was infected sometime between
1980-1985. I was diagnosed January of 1990 with aids and chronic Hepatitis
B.
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It was undoubtedly the feeling of exile - that sensation of a void within
which never left us, that irrational longing to hark back to the past or
else to speed up the march of time, and those keen shafts of memory that
stung like fire .... And when we realized that the separation was destined
to continue, we had no choice but to come to terms with the days ahead -
Albert Camus,The Plague
-- Planet Peace http://www.teleport.com/~amt/planetpeace/ /-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\ Nothing Real Can be Threatened. Nothing Unreal Exists. \-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/