Friday, May 15, 2009

Fickle and - Oh Freak!

We are so fickle Whatever we have, we seem to want its opposite. You know - like when things are hectic, we just wish for them to slow down. They slow down and we are bored. We sigh and wish our lives were not so humdrum. Thats the peace we wanted We just didn't know it was going to look like this So we don't recognize it. Philosophising aside: I have a huge huge OMIGOSH! Do you remember a few posts ago I mentioned that our Malawian gardiner's young wife had died suddenly? That was bad - but there's more: a) She had been at the clinic THAT day and they told her to come back in two days time for meds b) and then the biggie: DH asked to see her death certificate before he helped with the expenses (huge!) for her funeral. Cause of death on the certificate? NATURAL CAUSES! We met her and her 9 year old daughter.
I doubt she was 30.
I hear this is normal procedure here. Aids has a huge stigma still So just imagine what the REAL Aids figures are for this country?

9 comments:

jacki janse van rensburg said...

my 30something year old gardener died of TB...

allie. said...

The lines blur - sometimes its the fact that they have aids that they cannot recover from other ailments.
But ja, TB is the other biggie
Tragic hey!

Mel said...

absolutely horrific

Shayne said...

What frustrates me is that our staff are faced with exactly the same treatment. Our farm is 30km from town and we are supposed to have a mobile clinic that visits us 1xmonth - but our farm is in a different "district" altho a mere 5km from my neighbour that they go to - but they won't come to us. And yet, my staff (approx 25 - families included) continue to support the ANC - yet it's that exact government that cause all the problems here. No deliverance of promises.

allie. said...

Its crazy Shayne.
But lets just hope that the new people will do a better job.
I know its a long shot though

Lynette Jacobs said...

Allie, what new people? Shayne and I live in ANC land remember...you are the lucky ones!

It is sad and tragic...last year my domestic worker died of a totally curable cancer that went untreated despite her monthly visits to the oncology dept of the hospital.

Hayley said...

Yip same here, the lady that worked for me a few years back, also had contracted aids and passed away, but no one, not even the doctors would admit it.
You are right, i can only imagine, how massive the actual figures are.
Sad.

Kirsty said...

Hmmm - and then the other side! After giving these pregnant HIV +ve ladies an education about HIV and AIDS, and then giving them a c-section to prevent their babies contracting AIDS - and then you walk onto the wards the next morning to find them breast feeding those poor little mites that you have tried so desperately hard to save... It sux, and their seems no solution, despite education, c- sections and free formula for the babes...

Susan said...

Wow...this breaks my heart. It's evident that what we THINK we know here in the US about what reality is...we don't. Thanks, Allie for sharing. I'm sorry to hear about this tragic loss.