A Mother’s Love

I have been honest and transparent about my HIV status to my family, my friends, and my community for years now. This year, I did not realize how much I appreciated all these specific groups, and how much respect and love they have shown me this year.

One person who stands out to me - who has shown me nothing but respect and love - would be my mother. I disclosed to my mother a few months after being undetectable and she has been part of my support system ever since.

This year specifically sticks out for me because this is the first time that she and I commemorated World AIDS Day together.

Commemorating World AIDS Day together

The night of December 1st, 2021, AIDS Healthcare Foundation put on a free event called "The LA Revival" which took place at The Forum in Los Angeles, California.

This event was a free concert for the community commemorating World AIDS Day 2021 and honoring those who continue the fight against HIV/AIDS. When I got tickets, I knew right away that I wanted to bring my mother with me.

The 2 individuals who performed at the concert were Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Hudson. I grew up listening to Christina Aguilera in the car with my mom. She would be singing at the top of her lungs to songs like "Blessed" and "Genie in a Bottle." I also would watch American Idol during the week with my mom when she was rooting for Jennifer Hudson to win.

I knew that taking my mom to this concert would really mean something to her. Bringing her along with me also meant the world to me as well.

My mother's support

This specific World AIDS Day really stood out to me because this was the first time that my mother saw so many people come together for one cause. My mother and I have spoken about HIV in regard to my own health and wellness but never really talked to her about the epidemic or how many people were affected by it.

Throughout the concert, they had a few speakers who spoke about the epidemic and the great work that AIDS Healthcare Foundation is doing. They also showed clips of individuals who have passed away from HIV/AIDS which I could tell really affected my mother.

During the video, she grabbed my hand and expressed how important I was to her and how my diagnosis could have gone completely different years ago. It was nice to see how compassionate my mother was about all the things people had to go through like stigma and disclosure.

My thank you to her

During the car ride home, my mother thanked me for bringing her and asked a few more questions. Of course, she asked me if I was still taking my medication daily, but she also asked me again about what undetectable really is. I expressed to her that I am healthy as ever and really broke down the meaning of U=U and the statistics behind it.

I then thanked her for always being there for me and never seeing me as any different other than her son.