What if your illness became the vessel that freed your soul?
Dancing with HIV
is a powerful HIV memoir and poetic testament from Tony “T-Soul” Hughes, a young, gay Black man raised in Altgeld Gardens, Chicago, who navigates the deeply personal and societal trials of living with HIV. This poignant collection merges poetic expression and intimate journal entries to chronicle 16 years of emotional reckoning, self-discovery, and spiritual growth.
In the midst of physical chaos and uncertainty, Tony invites us into his inner world—a place of swirling thoughts, raw vulnerability, and unrelenting hope. With lyrical grace, he transforms fear into faith, stigma into strength, and diagnosis into dance. Each poem becomes a mirror that reflects love, loss, God, ancestry, family, and the burden of truth. Each journal entry captures the emotional complexity of survival while searching for peace, purpose, and spiritual healing.
T-Soul’s words resonate with readers who are seeking real stories of resilience, queer poetry that confronts silence, and LGBTQ+ Black voices that refuse invisibility. His writing honors unfulfilled dreams, celebrates family bonds, and ultimately crowns his life’s journey in authenticity.
For those impacted by HIV, moved by queer Black narratives, or seeking spiritual restoration through storytelling,
is more than a memoir. It is a sacred offering.
Step into Tony’s light. Let his words carry you. Begin the journey today.