My real friend

Many of people living with HIV are so afraid to be open about it, even to their true friends. It is not easy to do it but once you have done it you enjoy the freedom as much as anyone who is HIV negative or don’t even know her or his own HIV status.

Let me tell you about this special friend Eliane I have been talking about before my journey to Sweden.
We knew each other from very long time ago before Diabetes and HIV came in my life. There was time we lost track of eachother. Somehow we found each other via social media and I realised she was in Europe. I was not yet open about my HIV. Every time we would talk I would feel like telling her my secret. I knew she was working as a nurse but I doubted to be open. So one day we were having a topic on diabetes and she asked me how I was dealing with it here in Europe. I responded very well and I felt I needed to open up to her regarding my HIV status.
So I told her ”Eliane I am HIV Positive”. She said “No Eliane are you serious? You can not just tell me like this on a whatsapp call?” I asked her why? She said she needed to give me a big hug. She added, Eliane if you take medication you will live healthily. I told her that I take them many years, and that I am living healthily and that only sometimes Diabetes gives me a hard time. She said ”To me you are the same Eliane my best fried and I will always love you. This HIV is just a disease you can control and it is not going to ruin our friendship”.

She showed our real friendship during our visit to her home. She was not ashamed to introduce me and my family to her friends. Every friend of her that we met, most are connected on facebook where she would share her photos and tag my name. Knowing that everyone will check my account and will see all my facebook posts about my HIV positive. This is a real friend. Who loves me as I am, who is not afraid to be seen with someone who is HIV positive. Although in our African community some will immediately judge her and gossip that she also is HIV Positive because she is my friend. Hear me out, my friend Eliane Hallen is not HIV positive. We may share the name but we do not share the virus, the fact is that she is beautiful like me and she is my friend!
Saying goodbye is not a nice thing. But Somehow I need to be back. Holidays can never last for ever. We will miss you Eliane, Roxane, Rian, Johan and all the friends we met. We will miss Vasteras and the vibe! We hope to meet again, this time in Netherlands.
Please come to us soon.
Peace,
Eliane