I visited one of the largest townships in Cape Town this morning. I tagged along with my fellow American intern who serves as a counselor for the 5 program sites of Wola Nani. She's more like an employee because she graduated years ago and has a great job, but she's here volunteering her time to follow her passion. We got into her manual white Chico (it's not a rarity here - everyone drives one) and drove about 15 minutes outside the city. Wow, what a difference a 15 minute drive can make. No high rise buildings, no westernized looking buildings, livestock walking around (I witnessed three goats waiting at a bus stop), no clear indications of modernization and technology; just a very desolate-looking community. After making a few detours, we finally found our way to the program site. The site we have in Guguletu serves as a center for people to come in to get tested for HIV. They also offer pre- and post-result counseling services. When we drove into the little plaza, it looked more like the back of a shipping warehouse. There were garage looking entrances and no signs. Courtney (the counselor-intern) told me the reason for this was because we don't want people to be scared to come in because of the stigma attached to getting tested for, or having HIV/AIDS. So basically, our clients find us through word-of-mouth or being recommended from a local doctor. Our center is very small. Very....under-resourced. But it serves as a safe haven for many, so it is abundantly rich in less obvious ways. My plan was to take photos and short interviews of some of the staff and clients, but I felt like it would be too intrusive and insensitive of me if I did that right away, so I sat in and observed a counselor's support group instead. They meet once a week with Courtney to discuss high/low points of the week, express their challenges and struggles, ask questions, etc. There were 5 women and one cute little girl who was there with her grandmother. I sat on the side and just listened to these women talk about their daily struggles. One woman in particular really moved me because of her situation. She was tested as HIV+ in 2000 and was pregnant but fortunately, her child was born negative. She has disclosed the results to her parents, her brother, and her husband, but not to her 12-year old son and younger brother. She says it is really difficult to tell them because of their negative reactions; she "hypothetically" asked them what they would do if they found out she was HIV+ and they reacted with very negative comments. So that is what keeps her from telling them. And many of her friends don't believe she is HIV+ because she is healthy, strong, going about her daily life, and not taking ARV treatments. She has the mentality that she is not HIV+ ; she says she tends to forget she even has it. It was very motivating and inspiring to hear these women talk about their challenges (all the counselors are HIV+) with their health, as well as their struggles with handling all kinds of situations. One woman said she had no low points from her week, and her good point was that she is still alive. It's difficult to be here, emotionally, only because of the constant reminder of this widespread epidemic and consequences. But at the same time, there is a lot of hope and positive energy through the HIV+ victims who accept their fate and live strongly regardless. It is definitely encouraging to see.
I ended up taking some pictures, but mainly because it was one of the counselor's last week at that location. So I'm going to print the picture out for them sometime this weekend. Just a random thought....people here are so fascinated with pictures. I love it!
Counselor's support group in Guguletu
I have two new center visits next week - one in a children's program site, which I am really excited about, and one in the biggest township of Cape Town.
Sala kakuhle (take care in Xhosa)
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