Death Battle
A Friend's Death Gives New Meaning to "the War on AIDS"

Christopher Roos in the early 1980s, not long after he was diagnosed with HIV. Photos: Sean Collins

Listen as Sean Collins recounts the story of Christopher Roos.

Dec. 1, 2001 -- "More often than not, we use the language of war when we talk about disease," says Sean Collins. "The truth is, the metaphor is an apt one." So opens the story of the death of Christopher Roos, Collins' HIV-stricken friend.

Collins, senior producer of Weekend Edition Saturday, first told his story for the public radio program This American Life in October 1998, seven months after the death of Christopher, his friend since college. Today, NPR presents Collins' report again, in observance of World AIDS Day.

Collins is struck by just how similar to war his friend's struggle with HIV really was. Treatments, meant to attack the virus, merely caused "cracks in the ramparts" of Christopher's defenses.

"The fog of war" created as much confusion for Christopher and his friends and family as it does in real battle.

And in the end, the inevitable defeat. Looking upon the body of his friend minutes after his death, Collins observed that "You can see why people have always believed that something has left the body -- spirit, breath, ruach, pneuma, soul."

And when the victorious disease had chased the vanquished soul from Christopher, Collins was left to ponder that which must be pondered by survivors of all wars: Were the spoils worth the fight?


Other Resources

•Collins' piece first aired on This American Life as part of a program about germs.

•The World AIDS Day Web site.