Bilal

Bilal (name changed) is 7.

Yesterday he found out that he is HIV positive.

His mother Indu collects garbage to eke out a living. She lives in a shanty. Her husband died of AIDS. She has HIV too.

Indu had asked us to put her children into an orphanage. We tried to help her to keep her children with herself. She went ahead and found places for two of her kids.

One of which was Bilal.

Last week our JSK staff met Indu and reported that Bilal was back from the orphanage and that he was having difficulty seeing.

We asked them to bring Indu and Bilal to the centre for a checkup. It was clear that something was very wrong with Bilal's eyes - he had what look like cataracts.

We set up an appointment for an opthalmologist. And asked about his HIV test. It seems he had never had one. After counselling his mother and him, we took Bilal's blood sample and tested it at our centre.

The next day he was to return for his appointment and his result.

We were shocked (why?) to find that he was HIV positive.

They didn't come the next day.

In the night the first torrential rains of the pre-monsoon arrived, wreaking havoc on their shack. The next morning, Indu climbed up on the roof to try and put a plastic sheet. She fell down and injured her leg on a nail.

Bilal asked our staff - "mera report mein kya nikala?" - how did my report turn up?

Our staff told him that he would find out when he got to the centre.

Yesterday he came. I saw him sitting outside the door as his mother was inside - getting the news about her son. A small boy. A very small boy. Sitting on a white plastic chair.

Later in the day the opthalmologist told us that he has a corneal infection and suggested getting a specialist referral. We sent him over immediately.

The corneal specialist offered a small ray of hope. He would start treatment with drugs immediately - and see if it improves. If not - then a corneal transplant is the only hope of saving Bilal's sight.

Now we see through a glass, darkly, but then face to face...