Stop Aids Poem by Walterrean Salley

A dreaded intruder invades
Stalking the lives of many
Young, old, rich and poor
With no regards for any.
Reducing the quality of life
Risking the future of men
Terrorizing husband wife
Parent partner and friend.
Children are true victims
And the fetus in the womb
Whose life is virtually over
Without a chance to bloom.
One has but to peer about
AIDS is everywhere.
In unsuspected places,
You'll find the virus there.
Lurking in dirty needles
Hidden in blood supplies.
Harbored in human cells
Where subtly it lies.
AIDS has no boundaries
And no favorite picks.
Its ability to subdue
Is subtle, painful and quick.
It destroys immune cells.
The body, vulnerable to attack
Submits to infectious diseases
Powerless to fight back.
AIDS dwindles fortune
And strips dignity and pride.
The stone-merciless disease
Causes its victims to slowly die.
Here today, gone tomorrow;
Some struggle for hope.
In the end the predator wins.
Survivors then must cope.
Scientists seek a cure
Attempting to save some,
Hoping to free society of
The God-forsaken syndrome.
What then can be done
To stop AIDS in its tracks?
That men no more fall prey
To its merciless attack.

(Revised 9/16)
**December 1 is World AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) Day