I lived in the Castro neighborhood in San Francisco during the 1980’s. This was the time when the bathhouses were closing, people were having difficulty getting hotel reservations and rental cars, and anyone with a visible birthmark was considered doomed. Everyday – literally – one of our neighbors, co-workers or relatives died.
There was no way to stop it. No clear pathway to a cure and even if you stopped having sex, you still kissed, hugged, danced and shared food with people who maybe still be indiscriminately sexually active.
This lasted for twenty years. There were always glimmers of hope. But day to day, obituaries outnumbered the glimmers.
Eventually, but not completely, life returned to normal.
Now, we have another nasty plague and although we often have glimmers of hope, the nasties usually outnumber the hopes.
Like the AIDS epidemic, It may take years and years for this nastiness to go away. But eventually life will return to normal and the nasties will decrease in proportion to the signs of hope and love.
Eventually, the change will happen. I know, I’ve been there. It will get better
Hang in there. Work for the cure.