Books like Borrowed Time: An AIDS Memoir

\ "What am I going to do without him?" I asked in a hollow voice, and Cope replied immediately, with great force and conviction. "Write about him, Paul," he said. "That's what you have to do."\ It's a book about LIFE and LOVE, not about death, emotional lines full of overwhelming sadness and grief and painful lost and regret and beautiful lyric and heartbreaking tenderness and touching memories...and LOVE, REAL LOVE. \ ...we never talked about dying because we were fighting so hard to stay alive.\ Paul Monette and Roger Horwitz\ No Goodbyesby Paul Monettefor hours at the end I kissed your temple strokedyour hair and sniffed it it smelled so clean we'dwashed it Saturday night when the fever brokeas if there was always the perfect thing to doto be alive for years I'd breathe your hairwhen I came to bed late it was such pure youwhy I nuzzle your brush every morning becauseyou're in there just like the dog the nightwe unpacked the hospital bag and he skippedand whimpered when Dad put on the redsweater Cover my bald spot will youyou'd say and tilt your head like a parrotso I could fix you up always alwaystill this one night when I was reduced toI love you little friend here I am mysweetest pea over and over spending all ourendearments like stray coins at a borderbut wouldn't cry then no choked it becausethey all said hearing was the last to gothe ear is like a wolf's till the very endstraining to hear a whole forest and Iwanted you loping off whatever you couldstill dream to the sound of me at 3 P.M.you were stable still our favorite wordat 4 you took the turn WAIT WAIT I AMTHE SENTRY HERE nothing passes as long asI'm where I am we go on death isa lonely hole two can leap it or elseor else there is nothing this man is minehe's an ancient Greek like me I doall the negotiating while he does battlewe are war and peace in a single bedwe wear the same size shirt it can't it can'tbe yet not this just let me brush his hairit's only Tuesday there's chicken in the fridgefrom Sunday night he ate he slept oh whydon't all these kisses rouse you I won't won'tsay it all I will say is goodnight pattinga few last strands in place you're covered nowmy darling one last graze in the meadowof you and please let your final dream bea man not quite your size losing the wholeworld but still here combing combingsinging your secret names till the night's gone\