Couple living with HIV celebrates Valentine’s day differently

Valentine’s Day is here with us again, a day to celebrate love. As is the tradition, many go on a spending spree, above and beyond to show love.

But for Morris Were and his wife Janet, their love language is unique. According to the couple living with HIV, love is not about showering a woman with gifts but making her feel confident and safe.

For years now, they have been marking the day, distributing condoms within their community in Mathare, Nairobi.

‘Valentines is a day of celebrating love, so we take advantage of International Condom Day which falls on 13th February and sensitize people about condom use so that they keep safe as they celebrate love,’ says Morris.

The couple, which is blessed with five children, is grateful that they found each other and that their HIV status has not affected their love life, instead, it has strengthened their bond.

‘I was low before meeting my husband, but after we got married, he empowered me with knowledge; I accepted my status and decided to go public about it’, says Janet.

As the world marks Valentine’s Day, the couple advises other HIV positive partners to walk the journey together and make each other’s burden lighter.

‘For us, we take our ARVs at the same time, we go to the same clinic together, so we know how each one of us is fairing on’ says Janet. The couple now advocates for improved access to HIV treatment and prevention interventions.