And Yet the Birds Still Sing
by
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As she walked in the building, the pale plain white walls and sterile smell of the place reminded her of the disinfected medicinal smell of a doctor’s office that she hated so much. Diane walked over to the receptionist’s desk and introduced herself. "Hello, I’m Diane Langford. I have an eleven-thirty appointment with Laura somebody. I can’t remember her last name um, but I do remember the woman on the phone saying that this Laura woman was a counselor or something," Diane said. "Yeah hi Miss. Langford, I’m sorry, is it Miss or Mrs.?" "It’s Mrs.," Diane replied. "I’m Carly Mrs. Langford, I spoke with you on the phone. You’re to see Laura Long. I’ll let her know you’re here," Carly replied with a smile. Carly buzzed in the back and announced Diane’s arrival. Within minutes, a short, slender woman wearing glasses and braces on her teeth emerged from the door just behind the receptionist’s desk. She was a youthful looking attractive woman about five feet two inches with bleached blond hair. She must have been a confident woman, because the evident black roots sprouting from the scalp of her head didn’t seem to bother her. "Laura this is Mrs. Langford, she’s here for her eleven thirty," Carly said. "Hello Mrs. Langford, I’m Laura," the woman said extending a bronzed colored hand. Diane looked at her and was immediately convinced that her skin tone was the product of a tanning booth. For no woman, black, white, Hispanic, Asian or other could have such a perfect skin tone without the help of modern science. "Hi," Diane replied as she shook Laura’s hand. "Nice to meet you Mrs. Langford. Please follow me, I have a room all set up for us in the back." Diane followed Laura to a drab little room that couldn’t have been any bigger that a jail cell. It was painted dark brown and had no pictures or decorations on the walls. There was a tiny desk inside the room with a chair behind it. On top of the desk was a thin file with Diane’s name on it. About two feet across from the desk sat another chair. Assuming that the chair was for her, Diane took a seat as Laura closed the door and took her seat behind the desk. "Mrs. Langford, I’m sure Carly told you that we had an important matter to discuss with you so I’m going to get right to the point," Laura said as she folded her young hands on the desk trying to look professional. "Mrs. Langford, we tested the blood that you donated a couple of weeks ago, and it came back positive for HIV. Now I don’t want you to panic because science has come a long way and . . . " "Wait a minute. I’m sorry, did you say that I tested positive for HIV?" Diane asked. "Yes I did Mrs. Langford," Laura replied unassumingly. Diane sat unresponsive, staring at the dark brown plain wall. She sat motionless for a while like a little defenseless mouse after being paralyzed by its venomous predator. "Are you okay Mrs. Langford?" "Okay? Yeah I’m okay," Diane said. She slowly turned to face Laura. "But there must be some sort of mistake. There’s no way I can be HIV positive. I haven’t done anything to be HIV positive. I mean, I don’t do anything. So there must be some mistake, you must have me confused with someone else." Diane fidgeted around in her chair, but kept her eyes fixated on Laura’s. "No Mrs. Langford, I have the right person." Laura said. "Well then the tests must be messed up, there must be something wrong with the way you do your testing because like I said, I don’t do anything to expose myself to that type of disease. I’m married, I don’t do drugs, and I feel fine. So, you probably need to check your testing machine or something," Diane said, expressing herself using her hands and arms. "Mrs. Langford, our tests are very thorough and reliable. Once blood tests positive, it’s re-tested twice more to ensure that the results are accurate," Laura replied in a melancholy tone. Diane’s eyes began to fill with water as she looked away from Laura. "Are you okay Mrs. Langford," Laura asked, handing Diane a piece of tissue paper. Diane took the tissue paper from Laura, cleared her throat and tried to stop the quivering that had begun to control her voice. "Are you telling me that you found HIV in my body?" Diane quietly asked as she began to wipe away her tears.
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About the Book
Diane Langford was living an ordinary life. She was mother to her eight-year-old daughter Kim, and her six-year-old son Darren. She was the wife of a firefighter, and herself, a social worker by profession. Diane was living a normal American life until she discovered, almost by chance, that she was HIV positive. And Yet The Birds Still Sing is an emotional and gripping tale of a woman whose life is almost ripped apart by a disease she didn’t even know she had, a disease she was desperately trying to understand how and why she got. Join Diane as she strives to maintain her professionalism at the office while she preserves her sanity at home lying in bed next to her husband, the man she suspects infected her. Diane’s spellbinding odyssey takes her from her home where she tries to raise a brash and sassy daughter, and a son whom she wakes every morning by telling him "it’s Christmas." Diane’s journey takes her to the office where she struggles to help young mothers cope with life, through numerous emotionally painful doctor’s visits, and back home to her husband Walter, the man she’s growing to hate, but continues to stay with "for the sake of the children." Diane’s journey takes her through a series of small emotional breakdowns until she discovers that she may have infected herself!
About the Author
Jayson Young was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. In his spare time, the seven-year police officer enjoys practicing the three R’s: Reading, Writing, and Racquetball. Jayson has been married for seven years, and is the proud father of two wonderful daughters ages five and three. Jayson was inspired to write And Yet The Birds Still Sing when he first heard of the rising and staggering statistics concerning HIV infection among women, especially African American women. He hopes that the book will raise awareness about the disease, and inspire people to learn more about it as well as do all they can to protect themselves from it.