copyright Dicho Disashi 2005
THE AIDS REVENGE ( extract from VERBAL DIARRHOEA or Mr. Kenny Bean in Africa)EDITED BY JOHANN EVERITT
This is the story of an English reporter who was sent to Africa to cover the Aids epidemic and the consequences thereof. He had to start at the economic power house of Africa, namely, South Africa and from there move on to the rest. He had to go to the most hated leader by the world powers, namely, the country of Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, to the most densely populated country of Africa, namely, Nigeria. From the centre of the African countries, the war torn by conflict ones, namely, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Namibia, Angola and on to the big and mineral rich countries like the Republic Of The Congo (the DRC). He visited the democratic countries of Africa: Zambia, Botswana, Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania and on to more war torn ones, namely, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Sudan (the biggest African country) to the African Arab countries: Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria and Libya.
He had a major subject to cover: the most current affair, namely, AIDS. He had to find out whether the world was loosing the war against this disease.
Many prior reports covered by many reporters were still not sufficient to cover this mysterious disease. The question was how to prevent this disease and thereby win this war.
Mr. Henry Bean was the man chosen by his agency to do the report. This reporter, known as Mr. Bean, had recently been released from a UK prison after a series of controversial reports that were construed as being misleading to the public. In fact, he had covered many report at around the world. The latest drama was when he went missing in the Amazon forest for many months. Unfortunately the plane in which the reporter was travelling, crashed in the Namibian desert just less than an hour to his final destination, which was Johannesburg in South Africa.
Of course there was much speculation as to the possible cause of the plane crash, such as terrorist sabotage, mechanical problems and even the possibility that the plane had been hit by a missile fired by the defeated rebel group of Savimbi in Angola. Many of his footloose and trigger happy supporters had fled to Namibia.
Very few people survived the crash. Many died from the suffocation in the smoke. The plane went down deep in the desert in the land that was shared by some of the rebels and then of course, the Bushman, most of whom were pygmy-like in stature. These Bushmen had kept resisting the advance of western civilization: they kept wearing mainly animal skins, paid no heed to schooling, and new ideas and even refused modern medicine. The Namibian government had tried many times to help and to change these people, but they had kept up the resistance.
On the day of the plane crash these bushman rushed to the scene and took the survivors to heal them with their traditional medicine.
At the time, a bus full of people from the civilized Namibia were on route to South Africa when they heard the spluttering of the plane�s engines and the subsequent crash. They risked leaving the women and children in the bus and went into the bush to see what had happened. What should have been a rescue mission then suddenly turned to robbery. Lead by the bus driver, their stole all the passenger�s belongings.
The bushman, on the other hand, were not interested in material things and took absolutely nothing from the passengers.
After several weeks, a few passengers survived in the land of bushmen after being treated with their traditional medicine.
Mr. Bean also slowly regained his memory. He had one thing left with him, namely, his laptop that had escaped the greedy hands of the scavenging bus people.
Now this man, who had been declared dead in the UK and the rest of the world, decided not to let on that he was still alive. He purposely hid his identity, trying to cover the news.
From Namibia he entered South Africa were he met his childhood best friend who was a dentist in Johannesburg. This friend facilitated in connecting him as a AIDS volunteer consultant to cover this phenomenon and to closely interact with the AIDS patients.
He had a special way of doing reports, working as an undercover volunteer worker.
It was his first time travelling to Africa. He was very anxious to cover news in this underrated continent of Africa and to visit many game parks in the land. It was destined to be his best journey as a reporter.
After working this way for six months some people were close to finding his true identity. Especially because he used his native name. His co-workers were wondering who Mr. Bean really was and if he was trying to hide his past. They kept asking awkward questions and he was becoming less talkative to avoid long chats with other volunteer councillors. He resorted to writing at night about the stories he had collected during the day. He wrote about what ordinary people thought about AIDS and also wrote about what he remembered about the plane accident and life with the bushmen. This also included his short stint as a security guard.
His best friend found him a job as a volunteer counselor at the AIDS clinics. He went for a one month course of training about AIDS and HIV and was able to get extensive information about HIV and AIDS. He interacted a lot with many patients and was also able to provide advisors to those who were seeking counselling.
His problems started when he ran into his British neighbor in a mall. The latter was taking a holiday in South Africa. The neighbor saw him from a distance and immediately began wondering if it could possibly be him. He looked like his neighbour in London, but could it be? There were very few people like Mr. Bean; his walk, his speech, the way he moved � just like his neighbour. He wondered. Even his gestures were familiar. He decided to approach him�:
Mr. Bean was very cautious in all his doings and when he saw this man coming he tried to hide between the mass of shoppers. His neighbor was also determined to meet him and to be reassured that it was him. Mr. Bean tried again to enter a super market but the man kept following him. He only managed to escape when he finally dodged into the mall's toilet.
He told himself that this was a wake up call for him to return home. The time had come for him to resume his reports in Africa, for him to stop living in this self made prison and to �regain� his freedom. He could not keep hiding his identity, It would be stupid if they caught him hiding his identity. It was time to call it a day because at work they were still asking many questions about his past. In the streets his was walking like someone who was hiding from the justice system. He had been fortunate that his ex neighbour hadn�t caught up with him, and the danger was not yet over�
He reported to his best friend what had happened in the mall and how he had escaped detection. How his ex neighbour had kept following him until he had ducked into the toilet to give him the slip. He was adamant that he could never hide the truth forever.
Edmond was happy that Mr. Bean had made his own decision to resume his project and return to his family as soon as possible. He had almost lost his life and the lover of his life too. If he didn�t come up with the strategy to hold her by promising to marry her, she would have been in another man's arms already. He insisted that he had to forgive all the people who he thought had trapped him and wanted to get rid of him. It was time for forgiveness�
He insisted:
Mr Bean decide to write his last report before returning home. It was the drama of a young pastor called Ngoma. A twenty nine year old pastor who had just completed his theological training. He had a series of diseased and when he became really anxious, he decided to undergo an HIV-AIDS test. He never thought for one moment that he might be HIV positive.
He first went to a private clinic for the test. When the doctor called him telling him that he wanted to see him in person to give him the result, he thought that something was drastically wrong. This was not a good news for Ngoma. He wondered why the doctor wanted to see him personally to tell him the result. From that moment he started worrying. He hoped that he was indeed HIV negative, because for him, it was a shame in the community and church if he turned out to be positive. He told himself that if it happened that he turned out to be HIV positive, that he will kill himself instead of living with the shame. It would be a huge blow for his future: no children because they could die from AIDS and no woman of his choice would accept him in marriage with that status. He swore to take revenge and not to die alone.
However, he kept his cool and went to see the doctor, who kept him waiting for about one hour before seeing him.
When he entered the doctor's office, even before the doctor spoke, he thought he discerned a sad attitude and naturally believed that he was HIV positive:
�This is life,� the doctor said. �We are all born to die. It may be difficult for you, but no one in this World is 100% healthy. We all have some anomaly in our bodies. You told me that you are a pastor?�
The new pastor saw something coming; �Yes, I am a pastor,� he replied. �I just completed my studies and I am a bread winner for my whole family.�
Ngoma's people didn't have doctors, engineers or highly educated people in the family. He was the one to pay tertiary schooling for his young brothers and sister. To make matters worse, he was the first born of a big family of 6 children.
�You know it is not the end of the World because you may still live for more than 15 years.�
He angrily asked the doctor; �Tell me what is wrong? Am I positive?�
�I�m afraid so, yes� but��
The young pastor was furious about the delay of getting his test results from the doctor. He concluded that if he was HIV positive, then how come? Surely the doctor could have made a mistake by mixing his blood up with other patients. �Tell me that you are wrong!� he pleaded.
The doctor informed him that the medical professional seldom made those kind of mistakes by giving the wrong results. But also that this wasn't the end of the World. He could still live for many years. Ngoma was a pastor but he was a human being too. Maybe he didn't contract the disease from sex. There are many ways of getting AIDS. The HIV or the monkey SIV virus can be passed from a person who has it to another person if they share the same needles and syringes that are not properly cleaned. That is why scientists still believe that the Monkey SIV entered humans by blood contact and adapted to the new environment human body. It can also be passed on if they both have a cut or an open wound and their blood mingles. Sick people may be given extra blood transfusion�
�As far I can recall my past, I never found myself in any of those situations.�
�Maybe you had some unprotect sex in your teens. AIDS could have been resident there for many years. Remember, it was only discovered in the early eighties.�
�This is real crazy and must be a mistake.�
He angrily left the doctor's office and felt as if he was dreaming on his way back home. Then he suddenly felt this desperate urge to sit down on a ground started crying.
Ngoma hoped that he was dreaming. He didn't want to be an HIV positive patient. He wondered who have given him this disease. He concluded that a woman could have passed the disease on to him as a form of revenge. He wasn't gay so he couldn�t blame any men. He didn't recall any event where he shared a razor or a needle with anyone else. He had only had a sexual relationship with one church going woman who had very high morals. She was a widow with 3 children and she was 15 years old than him. He had just completed his training and he was well respected in the church. Many women adored him and wanted to marry him.
He tried to comfort himself at the same time: I know what I am going trough. I am courageous to go for an HIV test, because many people are too scared to undergo the HIV test. I know that if I have fooled around with many women in the past I would only have myself to blame. But, I am not alone; there are more than 4 millions peoples who have the same disease in Africa. I have to be strong. I Have to go in my room and sleep. I know that time will heal me and I understand that there are many people in the same situation too�
He felt encouraged and went in his flat and tried to sleep, without success. He cried for many hours until he got desperately tired, and then he decided to kill himself.
He first took many medicines and put them together in a milk glass to kill himself. Then a second thought flashed across his mind; The doctor said that I may live for many years. Who will pay school fees for my young brothers and sisters? It should take them only another 5 years to complete their tertiary studies.
Then he took the self made poison glass of milk and threw it away.
After two hours the bad suicide thoughts returned to his mind: Was this the way to go to avoid humiliation? He wanted to confront the disease before the disease confronted him. It would be useless once he was already emaciated, when he would have to be carried to the toilet like a baby. In the light of his profession, he refused to allow this humiliation.
That was when he decided to kill himself with a gun. He took the gun and put it against his head. Then he said a short prayer; �God, where are You?�
He hesitated and took the gun away from his head. Then he filled it with bullets and put it against his head once more. Another thought then entered his mind; I am a pastor. God may do a miracle and heal me from the disease. I have prayed for many people who were instantly healed and cured. This is only a temptation of demons that I have often chased that have come to plague me. Maybe the test results are wrong. Maybe the testing machines are out of order�
He stopped trying to terminate his life with the gun. At around four o�clock in the morning, after a short sleep, he woke up and immediately decided to jump from the sixth floor were he was living. He opened the window and thought: What�s the use of living now? The HIV may develop rapidly in my body and in only a few months I may even have full blown AIDS. It will be a shame to my family, to my church and to all the pastors in the World. Let me jump to end this humiliating life�
He got ready, putting both his feet on the window ready to jump. Then yet another thought crossed his mind: This is not the right decision. It will be a double shame when they examine my dead body and find out that I have committed suicide after I found out my HIV status. It will be a double shame when the journalists will report on Television and Radio that an HIV positive pastor has ended his life. This is not the solution. I can see all the newspaper reports and headlines: �A young pastor committed suicide��
He stopped his attempt at suicide once more. He got some sleep in the early hours of the morning and then didn't attend the morning service at the church. He notified them that he was sick and then slept on.
He decided to confirm the result of the test by undergoing a second test at a governmental institution. He went to where Mr. Bean had been working as a volunteer. The result was once more positive. That was when he consented to undergo a counselling session to try to find a way to extend his life.
�I still don't believe that I am HIV positive,� he told Mr. Bean. �I don't want to jump into anti-retroviral treatment(ART). I am sure that my CD4 is still higher than 200. But I want to live on healthy food. What can I eat to live longer?�
They gave him a brochure which he spent a few minutes reading. It was for the HIV patient. It told him that he may eat healthy food to make his body stronger to fight the sickness in delaying its development. He would have to eat different kinds of food: fruit and vegetables, beans, lentils, meats, chicken, fish, milk, eggs, maize or yogurt, brown bread, brown rice, maize samp, butter, oil, peanut butter, nuts� In short, he would have to eat a different selection of foods, drink water and Rooibos Tea rather than cold drinks. He would have to prepare his own fresh food rather than buying meals or take aways. To save money, lentils, beans and soya mince are cheaper than meat and chicken and if he could not afford fruit, he could eat more vegetables�
Mr. Bean assured him that this document would help him to compare the SIV and HIV. Most healthy foods were of the vegetarian kind. Monkeys, for instance, eat plenty of vegetables, like beans, lentils, peanuts, nuts and maize samp which was the staple diet of chimpanzees in order for them to produce milk for the baby monkeys. It was one of reasons, he admitted, that humans and monkeys had a lot in common and shared many things in common.
�I will try to live on those foods that you have mentioned,� he assured Mr Bean. �I am still fighting to have a positive attitude. I try all the time to keep a positive attitude.�
Ngoma went on reading the other page of the brochure: A positive attitude would help him to retard the development of the disease. It was very important to have a positive attitude. He had to avoid worries. He would do well to avoid stress too. Besides eating healthy food this would help him too.
In the unpublished part of the document of professor Steve Rowan, he mentioned that a SIV Chimpanzee that had developed stress in the Congo after a miscarriage, had died sooner than expected because of the stress. A second male Chimpanzee lived much longer with the SIV virus - for many years in fact, and simply because he never developed stress. He was the mate of the female Chimpanzee. The death of his lover upset him only for few days because he has other two females lovers with him.
Ngoma confessed that he sincerely hoped that he would succeed. The matter became a little more complicated when he was alone at night. That was when he had all the weird ideas in the World.
�I really appreciate this session,� he told Mr Bean. �Thank you for the advise.�
When he left the counselling office, he seemed to have regained his confidence. They spoke often to one another and took one another�s addresses and contact numbers.
When pastor Ngoma returned that night, he had other thought that filled his mind. This time he was not worrying about suicide, but rather revenge! Because of 5 minutes of pleasure he had to deal with a lifetime challenge of illness. Because of a short lived sexual act, he would be humiliated for the rest of his life. He felt that his entire life had changed because of this disease. What a mess, and especially for a pastor! What would people say? He felt that he wouldn�t be respected any longer. After all, he used to advise peoples to live clean lives. He used to tell young people to stay away from prostitution. He wouldn�t be respected and would no longer be a role model to the young people in the church. He cried: �I am finished! I may even loose my dream preacher job!�
Those hounding thought brought in him a plan of revenge: I have to punish the one who has ended my life, my reputation and my future, he told himself. What do I have if I don't have a future? I will take revenge before I die. I am a walking corpse and I will be shamed any more�
In his mind he recalled all the women he had sleep with in his entire life: There was Suzana, three years earlier. He had used a condom in their sexual activities. Then he recalled the rest. He had slept a lot with that choir girl, but they had used condoms. As far as he could recall, he only had unprotected sex with sister Dolly who was 15 years older than him with 3 children. She may have transmitted AIDS to him. If she infected him, then she had to pay! But then again, none of her children were HIV positive. They were all healthy. Perhaps she was infected only after giving birth to those children. He was sure that she was the only one who could have infected him. Surely she knew that she was HIV positive and came to seduce him and kill him in this terrible way. Had she taken revenge on him? His conclusion was that he was not the one who infected her. Why in God�s name would she take revenge on him, an innocent pastor? He would make her pay!
Two thoughts were fighting in his mind for supremacy: the good and the bad, positive and negative thoughts, angelic and satanic thoughts.
Early in the morning the pastor went to buy an axe and a sports bag. He put the axe in the bag and went to Dolly's house.
He only had one thought on his mind; How could she have wanted revenge on him? He was not the one to approach her. He did not wanted to sleep with an older woman. She must have sought revenge on him � an innocent pastor. He was not the one who infected her. She had to pay and this would be a lesson to everyone who infected innocent citizens. He would make history today�
He arrived at the woman�s house. As usual, Dolly Suzanna, who was a member of his church, welcomed him to her house: �Pastor, you are early today. Are you from the gym?�
�No, I decided to pay you an early visit today,� he answered.
�That�s very good. That means you really care about us.�
�It�s my job to care about all the sisters and brother in the church.�
�Pastor, can I make you a cup of coffee? All my children went to school.�
�Thank you sister. I am alright, I just came to pray for you.�
�I�m coming pastor, just allow me to finish sweeping the children�s room.�
�I am waiting.�
The woman went to finish sweeping her children�s room and returned after 30 minutes.
�Thank you for coming to bless me early in the morning,� she said. �I will start my day full of blessings.�
With that, the woman knelt down next to the pastor to be blessed. She closed her eyes as the pastor prayed in tongues�
He opened his bag, took out the axe and struck the woman on the neck, severing her head with the single blow.
Most of the neighbours were at work and no one saw him do it. He slowly put the axe back into the sports bag and went to report his crime to the police.
This was only one example of the reactions of some people when they learn they HIV positive status.
The man in black was this time not attending the funeral. He was attending the most controversial court case. He left the unfinished matter as they postponed the case.
Mr. Bean was sitting on a chair wearing his black suit next to his Laptop when he found the meaning of the formula that he had been looking for for many years. A stint in prison, a plane crash, the watchman job and the counsellor job all worked together in helping him to discover the meaning of that formula.
The sad news was, that both the formula and his journalistic life had one thing in common; they were not complete. He had to tell his best friend, Edmond, about the sudden change to his program. �My friend,� he told him. �I am very thankful for all the opportunities you have given me. You gave me all the basic necessities, you introduced me to the counseling body, you helped me in keeping the biggest secret of my life and thereby saved my marriage. I think is time for me and you to regain our freedom. I want to complete my job, but I have to stop now because they may discover my true identity sooner than expected. I want to fly back tomorrow to surprise my wife. It will be Kerry Hilton's birthday tomorrow - she will be turning 38.�
He had many reports from this continent: The airplane crash, the life with bushmen, the train story, the security story and the current affair, namely, AIDS. He wanted to travel the entire continent to pursue the AIDS report to Zambia, Uganda and Nigeria. But He had to end the mission sooner than expected, like professor Steve Rowan's famous and internationally needed formula: ABC+D(h2O.
This was good news for his friend, especially the gift he would give his wife - just by being alive. �Yes, the time has come for you to return home,� he said. �Your wife is turning 38?�
�Yes, she will be 38 tomorrow.�
Dr Edmond often recalls the life of Mr. Bean and Kerry Hilton: The years fly by when he does so. He still has her image in his mind when she was young and fresh in the streets of London. He even realized by the phone that she had matured in voice.
�Mr. Bean, you didn't have to thank Edmond. He was the man closest in Edmond's family. They grow up together and they had all the adventures together. Mr Bean's house was Edmond's house. Edmond's parents and Mr Bean's parents used to call them twin brothers.
�It will be good for you to return tomorrow to surprise your wife on her birthday, but Mr. Bean wanted you to return and complete your work.�
He was not only an undercover journalist reporter, but he swore to also help the community to work as a volunteer. Africa is not only South Africa. He has to visit countries like Sierra Leone, Liberia, Malawi, Uganda, Ethiopia, and many others. Africa is the continent that has the most countries, 52 to date. He has to see the true continent and the challenge that faces people because of poverty. AIDS is not an African sin - it is just a disease like many diseases.
Mr. Bean confessed: �I will never forget my trip to Africa.� He had been to many places and he had thought that his trip to the Amazon in South America, in Brazil was his best trip of all time. But he just realized that Africa was by far the best trip of his life. He had lived with indigenous tribes in South America, but he had lived with the bushman in Africa. These were his best friends. They saved him from the burning plane, they fed him and healed him without any charge. They showed him true love. He went to Windhoek where he learned the many hardships. The adventure of looking after the rich man�s house.
The passion and the love of his work brought him to South Africa without interrupting his work process. He met many friends there and saw and witnessed the AIDS epidemic in Brazil and now also in Africa. He didn't read about it in the magazines or newspapers - he witnessed the gravity of the epidemic first hand. It is different to hear it on the radio, to see it on TV and to read about it in the newspapers, but living with it is another experience. He saw the misery that the disease has brought in many African families. He saw the mystery behind that disease. He witnessed the challenges and how desperate people want and need the cure. If only the world could get a rapid cure for this disease � it would be one the biggest gifts received from God.
His mission is not complete. AIDS does not exist only in South Africa. There are many countries hit by this disease in Africa. On his return to this big continent he wanted to go deep into Africa, to Zambia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Congo and Nigeria. Then he wanted to go to Asia to continue his research on this epidemic.
He discovered that AIDS exists in all the countries in Africa as well as all the countries of the World. There was no safe haven from AIDS. Although only few were infected, everybody was at risk. As a reporter and journalist, he had the responsibility to warn all the people of the world of this epidemic and pandemic. Africa has a whole has been hit by many disasters. Slavery, colonialism, internal war and now all the African countries and the world have a common enemy: AIDS. Many innocent children suffer because of the premature death of their parents. If the epidemic and pandemic is not halted now, it may reach uncontrollable dimensions. We all have the assignment to fight the disease in all our different careers.
Edmond encouraged his friend not to stop spreading the word on this new fight. He said, �I must use my capacity as a dentist to educate the people in my sphere, while you must use your journalistic career to put a specific accent to the danger of the disease. AIDS does not have barriers or frontiers. It does not chose according race, genre, income or environment. Please go there and show the way to prevent the disease.�
MR. Bean covered many stories in the past, but this is the most important one because the future of the next generation depends on our actual effort to stop the spread of the disease, not only in Africa, but in the entire world.
He covered stories about wars but many wars ended. He covered many stories on cases, and the cases ended too. He then decided to return to cover more about the epidemic to try to end the disease.
He decided to extend his work to the Congo and Angola to see the Ebola epidemic too. Unfortunately, from his journalistic point of view, it unfortunately came and went in a few weeks Ebola presents a far more immediate danger that AIDS. AIDS kills after months and years, but Ebola kills in hours and spreads simply by a simple contact with the infected person.
�Tell me, are you afraid of flying again?� his friend asked.
�No, I am not afraid of flying anymore.�
However, when he took the plane to Johannesburg from Windhoek, he was a little afraid but consoled himself that accidents are an unavoidable part of life in modern civilization. There are many more accidents on the roads than in planes. The plane accidents are very rare and he felt safer travelling by plane than by car. One in a million planes ever landed up in an accident.
�I am happy to hear how strong you have become after the plane crush. I will wait to see some stories in your reports,� his friend said.
�I will talk about my entire journey in Africa and include the story of the plane crash, the bushman, my adventure in Windhoek, my friend Ntayi and the pastor Ngoma. As you know, I have to leave the pastor court case to wish the most important woman in my life, happy birthday.�
It was Saturday, 11 September 2004, when the English reporter was leaving the continent. Before heading for the airport to catch his plane, he went first to the church to thank God and to say a good bye to the continent he had learned to love in the past few months. In the church he found a Massachusetts educated preacher tackling the same controversial subject. It was also an opportunity for the reporter to listen to what the Bible had say on this topic. People in the streets were calling it a disease sent by God to punish humans from their immorality.
The big pastor standing in front was talking about the most talked subject of this era. Quite a coincidence for the journalist to complete his report. �Beating AIDS is not beating death,� he man was saying. �HIV is the disease that causes AIDS. AIDS is a collection of diseases that are acquired from HIV once the immune system is no longer able to protect the body from illness. The disciple of Jesus Christ asked about the conclusion of the world in Matthew 24:3. Jesus answered by saying that nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom and there will be great earthquakes and in one place after another pestilences. The Bible talks of deadly plagues in Revelation 6:8. There was a form of an epidemic in the past called the Spanish flu during the Great War which was renamed to be called the World War One. It was the start of the fulfillment of the prophesies regarding what the Bible calls the Last Days. The fulfilment of the prophecies involve pestilence and deadly plagues. The majority of people who died from Spanish flu were aged between 20 and 40 like AIDS does today. The pandemic started in March 1918. Many historians trace it origin from the state of Kansas. It spread to France and many parts of the world. The life expectancy of people in the United States dropped by over 10 years in 1918. The Influenza spread to Western Samoa now called Samoa. Within two months about 20 % of that population died - 38 302 people. In total it is estimated that in one year about 20 millions people died from this disease, while AIDS, which has been around for more than 20 years, has killed about 20 million people too. The deadly virus hit hard in Philadelphia, so much so that the city had a critical shortage of coffins. The Spanish influenza killed more Americans in one year than people who died in both World Wars. It was the most devastating pandemic in the history of mankind. That virus reproduced much faster than the AIDS virus. Another virus that appeared in this continent is called Ebola. It appeared in the Congo and Angola. Some isolated cases were found in a few other African countries and it was developing much faster than the AIDS virus. However, it killed less people. AIDS is not the only pandemic to have existed into this world. Maybe other dangerous ones may appear in the future. Our prospect for a healthy future may not seem bright. However, the Bible also gives us hope. For example, God made a promise to Noah and his family before the global flood. First he warned Noah and urged him to build an ark in Genesis 6:13 and 14 and in genesis 7:1. When the ark was completed, the survivors were carried safely through the water. Those who trusted God, as Noah did, had the prospect of surviving a vast destruction. Look in Luke 17: 26 and 27 and see John, an apostle of Jesus, saying; "the world is passing away and so is its desire, but he that does the will of God remains forever." In revelation 21:3 and 4 it is written: God will reside with them, and they will be with them. And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away. If you seek God and come to trust in Him fully, you have a bright future ahead of you. And pestilence will be gone forever.�
Mr. Bean had to leave the church before the conclusion of the message, but he got the most important part. He was expecting the preacher to be just like people on the streets, talking about punishment from God on immorality. He had learned that AIDS was not the only disease that killed many people in the world. He was afraid that another disease may take over one day.
He made a decision to wear traditional African clothes with plenty of colorful beads and sandals on his return to London. He was going to wish her wife happy anniversary in that attire on returning home on her birthday.
Before heading for his house, he decided to go first to his post office box. His mail was important to him. After loosing everything in the airplane crash, he only had his laptop, some cards and a small postal key.
His reason for flying on the 11th of September was not mere coincidence. It was his wife�s birthday, yes, but there was another reason. He wanted to commemorate that September 11th episode where 3 000 peoples died in the hijacked airplanes. Thirdly, he also wanted to kill the fear of travelling by airplane. It was a special and memorable day.
He went through the same procedure each time he returned to England. His first stop was the post office box. While the taxi driver was waiting for his client, Mr. Bean was sorting out his mail and throwing away in the dusty post the pamphlets. He found hundreds of letters on his box, but he got another shocking letter, similar to that of Prof. Steve Rowan. It was a large piece of mail with a warning: "secret of the world". This one though, didn't have a �no opening� warning. He decided to open the mail before he returned to his waiting taxi. It didn't have a sender name. The sender was anonymous. Only the title was disturbing. It read �Origin of AIDS". A reader of the document Mr. Bean had published, had his version of the origin of AIDS.
The letter had only four pages, and the author of the letter was attacking Prof. Steve's theory. It was a shame that Steve was insulting the Bible's origin of the human race. The Bible has taught us that God created man on His image. There is no link between humans and monkeys. No animal viruses will survive in human's bodies.
Mr Bean wondered about this writer. Hadn�t he heard about the mad cow disease or the bird flu symptom? However, he decided to continue reading. It said that he had insulted God's intelligence. AIDS is an invented virus by fellow humans. It is revenge from the Japanese. It was designed to kill Americans. The virus was developed in a Japanese laboratory.
Mr. Bean laughed. He was laughing because he had heard those theory from people on the streets. He wanted something with a scientific definition, like Professor Steve Rowan. However, he decided to read the rest of the funny letter. In effect it continued that AIDS was created by the Japanese inventor, Yoshi Suzuki. It was to take revenge on the Americans for the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War Two. Hundreds of thousands of people died there and Yoshi had lost all the members of his family. He had injected the virus into four beautiful Japanese women, named Song Tae Chon, Lee Sam Yoo, Takeda Hiroko and Eiko Sugihara. They were the first terrorists because they were aware of the deadly virus effect, but decided to take revenge for the Japanese defeat in another form. They were the Kamikaze of death. They went to USA to spread the disease but weren't aware that the virus would spread all over the world. The world is suffering from the miscalculation of Yoshi's invented virus.
The first thing that come in Mr. Bean's mind was this; If the Japanese theory were true, and if a human invented the virus, then why do they not cure it?
While trying to finish the upsetting letter, Mr Bean heard the taxi driver impatiently hooting and calling for him to get back into the taxi. He immediately rejected this ludicrous theory, choosing to stick rather to Steve's Monkey theory. Then he ran for the taxi.
He arrived safely at his home in London in the evening. There were many people attending his wife�s anniversary. He knocked at her door. When they opened the door, everybody, instead of welcoming him back, were all running away�
�A ghost! A ghost!� they were shouting. �Mr Bean has risen from the grave! He�s a ghost! This is the end of the world!�
The former man in black tried in vain to calm them down. �I am Mr Bean, the missing English corpse from the plane accident in Africa. I am the Mr. Bean - the man missing in action �I am back.�
His wife later recalled all the events before coming to him: �I had prayed for God to do a miracle when my husband�s body was not found in the mortuary. They had been a missing body. They later found two survivors, and one was missing. The Daily Sun reported the possibility of Mr. Bean being alive. My husband�s best friend promised to marry me and promised to wait for a while - maybe he was trying to save my marriage. This is not a ghost. Thank you God - my prayers have been answered.�
Unfortunately, the party was over, but Mrs. Bean received her most precious gift that money could not buy. The return of her husband.
The formula left by Steve Rowan was published in the newspaper after the reporter survived the plane crash and decided to stay for a while in Africa get a clearer perspective of the disease.
Everyone was expecting the reporter to explain the definition of ABC+D. That was everyone�s main focus and expectation. He decided not to disappoint the public expectation and called for a media conference. The interviewer had become the interviewed. The conference room was packed with about 150 journalists, all eager to understand the formula. That incomplete formula was widely viewed as a cure to the pandemic AIDS.
Mr Bean started by introducing the subject of the day; �I leared from the best,� he said. �The best just happens to be my hero, Steve Rowan. Steve had decided not to hide the research secret and choose me to pass the message on to you. Steve Rowan may have died, but his work still lives on with us. AIDS is not a horror movie, said Steve in one of his letters to me. It is a reality. There is no safe place to hide from AIDS. Few may actually be infected, but in reality we are all affected. AIDS is not a death sentence either. They will still die with or without AIDS. The influenza called Spanish flu may be forgotten today, but many people died in one single year. The world could still experience another major killer in future too.
Mr.Bean wanted to be precise in saying in the conference that HIV is the virus that causes AIDS. Not that all the HIV Human Immunodefiency Virus positive people die from AIDS. It is a word from latino meaning Acquired Immune Defiency Syndrome. It weakens a person's ability to resist infection. Some may have the virus but in fact die from a natural cause or an accident. He insisted that human and Simian or Monkey are all in the same category. The monkeys also have the similar virus in their body Called SIV, namely, Simian Immunodefiency Virus, that causes AIDS too. It is not only the human race that was suffering - even their closest human's relatives, the monkeys are experiencing the same problems.�
All the people in the wall went: "oh". What this meant was that the man has got the most sought after formula in the world: the cure of AIDS.
�I got the formula. The full note left was, �PS Mr. Bean, ABC+D( h2O+.�
�Mr. Bean is my character - where I talk less. Mr Bean was known for not talking. In that note Steve wanted a man who would not talk for the sake of talking. That means to break that silence. �We have to break the silence� is one of the remedies for this disease. We have to talk and demystify this disease. We have to consider it as any other existing disease, and not as a curse. Let�s break the silence.�
The reporter repeated again: "I have the meaning of ABC+D. With all the research and information I collected, it gave me the meaning of the simple formula. The formula has two parts; ABC means prevention; A, means absent. The one who abstains from sex will eventually not get infected. Now that the medical world is aware of the blood to blood transmission of the disease, it takes all the possible precautions to avoid the transfusion by blood contact. B means be faithful to your partner. The more sex partners you have, the more are your chances of contracting the deadly virus. It is a worldwide call to return to our traditional culture. All cultures are good and there is no bad culture. Quote me on this; there is no culture in the world that encourages cheating or sexually immoral practices. If it exists. that means it is not a culture. C meant condoms. The only way to avoid unnecessary disease. AIDS is not the only sexually transmitted disease. We have plenty, such us Gonorrhoea, Genitals herpes, Chlamydia, Trichomoniasis, Thrush, Public Lice, etc. There are about 25 kinds of sexually transmitted diseases. And condom is the simplest way too to avoid unwanted pregnancy.
After talking about the meaning of the ABC, everybody asked him about the second part of the formula, the +D (H2O. It looked to them as if it was the element that was missing in the development of the formula.
He decided to explain what his tutor was trying to say: �I went to Africa and while I was there I tried to find the meaning of all the formula. But you don't have to wait only for a scientific formula to save your life. Not all the scientific formula or medicines actually cure or control the diseases they were created to cure. If the pills were able to do so, we would not have experienced death anymore! Yes, the formula was incomplete, and death caught up with the old man while he was trying to reveal the entire formula. But I have hope because that formula is a prophecy to me. Steve didn't finish the formula and I didn't finish my mission to Africa. I had planned to visit as many countries as possible, but some unfortunate circumstances forced me to return. I only saw Namibia and South Africa while Africa is the continent with 52 recognized countries. The formula wasn't finished and my trip to Africa end up as a disaster when the plane crashed with many people on board. Just as the formula wasn't finished. I, likewise, didn't finish what I wanted to do in Namibia either. I didn't finish my assignment there. I tried to finish that formula. The reason I hid my identity was because I wanted to finish this formula. Namibia was a land where I had neither family nor friend, but I decided to live there. If my identity was not revealed prematurely, I could have found the meaning of ABC+D. But even though I tried to resist it, I ended up returning earlier than expected. The formula wasn't finished, and the scientists may not complete the formula either like they haven't completed many other formulas for all the different diseases. The formula left by my mentor, Steve Rowan, had two parts. The first part was ABC and I gave the definition as A, abstain; B, was be faithful and C was condomize. The first part has to do with prevention. As for the second part, you�re all wondering why Steve Rowan put a plus sign there? It was to differentiate the two parts. ABC is prevention and D was only the scientific part of the formula. That second part, namely, D, simply means Defense or scientific remedy. As for what H2O meant; You all know about H2O. H20 means water. Steve wanted to tell those who already have succumbed to the virus to control the disease with balanced food. To balance their nutrition. Not only physically but also mentally. The mental strength may help the patient to live longer. Defence with balanced food. Defense with mental strength - avoid worry, and exercise your body to bring balance to your mind and body. The only cure for AIDS is a balanced nutrition or a scientific formula to boost the immune system. The scientific future generation will develop a cure by boosting the immune system. The future AIDS cure is a development of what the scientist has already discovered. The cure to boost the human defense system. They have already done it but they are working on developing and making the drugs able to control with efficiency and resist to the virus. It is simply the development of the actual drugs such us ART drugs and Vitamins. No one will live forever in this world, but we all want to live longer. Balanced food may help you. All the antiretroviral treatment and vitamins may help to achieve that goal. Let me tell you that we all want to live longer, knowing that we will all die one day. Tell me how many people in this audience would love to take a pill to live for 500 years if the inventors ever make that kind of pill? I think very few of us will accept that offer. Life could be boring, living for 500 years. H2O meaning food. It means mental strength. Many die just when they develop the stress of living with the HIV virus. Physical exercise may also help to handle that stress. The second part was incomplete. I hope the other scientists will complete the formula one day. But even if they find the scientific missing word, they won't reject the H2O food of the body. They will add it to that formula that Steve has prophesized in ABC+D(H2O.
At the end of the press conference, everybody were at least happy to have a clue about the formula left by Professor Steve Rowan. It took a lifetime to detect the formula.
What I do know, is that AIDS will be not eradicated, but it will be controlled like cancer with the ABC+D(H20. The sad aspect of this disease is that people immediately assume that having HIV means have many sexual partners. But that is not always true. Some people have many partners and do not contract AIDS, while others have only one partner and still get the deadly virus. AIDS do not necessarily mean poor morality. It has to be viewed as any other disease.
Two weeks latter Mr. Bean received a prestigious media report award. As he spoke, when receiving the award, he firstly thanked the genial professor, Steve Rowan, for defining the destiny of the disease and giving him a chance to be involved in discovering the formula ABC+D(H20+ - the most sought after formula in this generation. He thanked the people who helped him to discover the formula as an AIDS counsellor. He thanked the people who helped him survive, namely, the bushmen and the king Shai. He confessed that the modern medical discovery could have failed if it were not for the bushmen that saved him. Without their help it couldn't have made it in arriving late in the modern hospitals.
He insisted, �I did not win this award. This most prestigious award was won by many friends, admirers and those who showed respect for my work. Thanks to God, our ancestors, Edmond, my wife Kerry Hilton, my brother Benjamin and everybody else who supported me in this project. But there is only one man who truly deserves this award, namely, Professor Steve Rowan.�
Two months later, Mr. Bean remarried his wife. This ceremony was a reuniting of the plane crash survivor.
Carter Ford, the man called �big man� by the bushmen, made a surprise visit with Kerry Brookes who was called �coloured girl� by the bushmen. He successfully managed to adopt the little girl and also to make it in time to marry the love of his life, Amanda Britney.
