"Dec. 1: World AIDS Day" by Cyrus Webb

(Listen to the audio of this poem here: http://tinyurl.com/ycytd4w )

This day should be committed to memory,
A symbol dedicated to it for all to see
So that we never forget what it represents.
It's one of those issues that we all must face,
Ignoring its influence doesn't begin to erase
The number of lives that have been affected or lost in the years since this social war began.

So now we have a day to recognize,
To get together not only to socialize but remember that every 30 seconds another name is added to the growing list of casualties.

Yet the war wages on, and we have been drafted to the front lines,
Helping others find a reason to join the cause.
And to do that, we must sound the alarm.

Alarm those around us and beyond how risky behavior can harm them--or worse.
We have to consider the role we play and
How to behave so respect can become just as important as our feelings of regret.

This day has been set so none of us forget that we could be among the number referred to in statistics.
The battle is real. HIV is real, and I feel that though the message is being spread, it can be said how important repeating it is.

So this poem is my way of doing just that.
By stating the facts, I react to the pandemic with words put to the page.
And I hope that no matter what the age of the reader, it will help them begin to better respond to their role in the battle--fighting to win.