Fish Out of Water

Word Count 370

This past spring break I went to New Orleans, Louisiana. During the week that I was there I spent a day with older people. The older people lived together in a large home called “Project Lazarus”, and their ages varied from late thirties to early seventies. They all were in a stage of the HIV virus, or had full blown aids. They now stayed in a home because they had no family to care for them.

I immediately felt like a fish out of water when I spent the day with these people. I could never again image what it would be like to have other people say what you can and cannot do. The residents were all limited to where they could go, and if they were able to go on different outings. I could never image having HIV/aids and watching my body slowly deteriorate.

“I can’t go! Because I called John a faggot,” said Ronicka Harrison a Project Lazarus resident.

I found this statement somewhat amusing, but it was a very serious matter for Harrison. The residents, other volunteers, and I were all going to the movie theater to see “Meet the Browns.” Harrison was punished for her statement, and could not attend the movies with us. This was a big deal, because the only time she goes outside is for her morning, lunch, and dinner smoke break. I felt that it was justified in her staying home, but at the same time it was sad to see her upset.

I felt like a fish out of water, because for the first time I truly felt sorry for someone else’s situation, it wasn’t the other way around. I felt that they were treated very child like by the workers. However, some residents still acted very child like given their ages. The people there had slowly lost their overall morale. The only things that brighten upped their day were having volunteers like myself go spend time with them. Because their families

It did not impacted me that day until I left and they were sad to see me go. Meeting these people changed me because it made me realize how simple things will make others feel better about themselves