On December 2nd, I went to see the Aids Quilt at the Michigan State Union. I remember going to see the Quilt once when I was younger, as it was shown at a viewing at a local community center. When I was younger, I didn't really understand what the quilt was about. All I knew was that families made the patches that comprised the quilt of loved ones who had passed on due to complications due to AIDS. Now that I am older, and I know more about AIDS, and I see the quilt for what it really is. Not only did the exhibit touch me, but I also was overwhelmed. The quilt has so much more meaning than just a bunch of decoration on a large piece of cloth. Each banner on the quilt represents a true hero. It represents the men and women who died because of a horrible disease. Mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, students, friends, and colleagues. People of black, white, Asian, and European descent. Rich, poor, educated, and non-educated members of the community. I suddenly realized, AIDS knows no boundaries and affects EVERYONE. I felt tears roll down my cheeks. So many different thoughts pop into my head. Why does this disease even have to exist? Why isn't there a cure? What can I do? Amongst the silent and subdued tone that filled the room, I heard my own cries. I searched around to see the expressions of the other visitors. What brings the other visitors here? Are the other visitors carriers of the AIDS virus and here looking to see what is to become of them after they pass on? The deceased has no reason to be ashamed. Each and every one of these panels is amazing. Some are decorated elaborately with pictures, paint, sequins, ballet slippers, army badges, patches, rainbows, medical prescriptions, keys, and pieces of clothing. Others are simple. They don't show too much, and those are the panels that make me wonder the most. Why are they so simple? Who made them? Family members? Friends? Lovers? ...