Scroll down to comment on this story.
April 2008
Halftime Show
by Randy Boyd
This sports fan marks the 50-yard line of a life with HIV.
Twenty-three years ago, at the age of 23, I was a closeted cheerleader who’d just graduated from UCLA and discovered I was HIV positive. Recently, I celebrated my 46th birthday. The scoreboard now reads: half a life with HIV, half a life without.
In the first half, I felt like a big black unathletic fag, a disappointment to my sports-loving family. In the second half, I evolved into an openly gay author living with AIDS, using the gift of writing to tackle homosexuality in sports. The second half has been much more enjoyable and educational. I learned that my mom can sometimes be right: She never stopped dreaming of medical advances keeping me alive.
I learned I can survive nightmares, hospitalizations, coworkers not eating my birthday cake because an openly positive man blew out the candles. I learned friends don’t always stick around. I learned I could love a dog beyond all measure.
The same spirited moves I’ve done since childhood—the dancing that made me a cheerleader (and fag) —are now called “street dancing,” a cool unisex craze for kids today. The “young, gay and horny” behavior that made me “sick” to my peers now gets equal time with the “young, hetero and horny” stuff on MTV.
By living long enough to witness subsequent generations, I see their behavior in my own and think: The first half of my life, I lived in a world where I felt wrong for being who I am. The second half, I’ve realized: There’s nothing wrong with who I am, and the world is catching up to understanding that same idea. Now back to the game.
Scroll down to comment on this story.
Hide comments
Previous Comments:
comments 1 - 10 (of 10 total)
Randy Boyd, , 2008-04-17 19:08:32
Randy Boyd here, author of the "Halftime Show" piece. Thanks a million for all your positive comments and for still being alive and here to further enrich the world. Keep dreaming! For more on me or my novels, all featuring Poz main characters, google "Randy Boyd" and "novels."
bob, Seattle, 2008-04-16 01:06:06
So, ummm is he single???? What a sweetheart!
Craig, , 2008-04-11 05:54:15
Well I am 45 and I was told back when I was 20. I have to say my family and I do not talk. Not sure weather it is the gay or the POZ thing. Well their loss. I am proud to be me and it is great that so many of us are starting to get out and run with the rest of the world instaed of just staying home alone
mick, Alexandria, VA, 2008-04-10 17:42:34
I found out when i was 27 and now i am 48. I experienced the same fears but now (after a little therapy) I have learned to accept it and move on with my life. Like Dennis I am more concerned now about dying from a stroke or heart attack rather than HIV.
kel, maryland, 2008-04-10 16:25:48
i also felt the same way.
i was about 25yr when i found out i was hiv+.
now i'm 47 and loving life but i'm afraid of what to come. well i be able to afford my meds as a senior citizens.
MrMyke, Philadelphia, 2008-04-10 14:17:58
I'm the same age - same race and same experiences! I never thought about it quite like you put it but thanks. Their is NOTHING Wrong with me. The world needs to recognize!
Thanks for sharing.
Dennis Moore, Seattle, 2008-04-10 14:08:30
I too seroconverted at 23 in 1980 (perhaps 1979). Hence I have actually lived longer with the virus than without. Now with all that I've managed to survive and deal with it seems a bit ironic that increasing my concerns are that I'm more likely to die of a stroke, heart attack, or some such old-fogey-sorta-thing. Who'da thunk?!
Julio Maldonado, Chicago, 2008-04-10 11:54:59
hey there
i dont know your name, but i just loved how did you tell us what happened with you and the most important, what is happening with you today after all these years feeling that stigma around you
that's cool and you are cool...!
Perc, San Diego, 2008-04-02 19:04:29
Start shaking those pom pom's
Percy Fuller, San Diego, 2008-04-02 18:35:59
Well well, no one would ever belive this. I can't find your card. please, asap
Perc
comments 1 - 10 (of 10 total)
