This hour: brothers and sisters contend with family illness.

Epic, Painful, Long, Scary 
by Julie Kimberly (Street Stories, ABC, 2006)
The 19-year-old African-Australian twins featured in this story hardly remember their mother and father who both died from AIDS-related illnesses when the boys were just toddlers. As fate would have it, one of boys was found to be HIV-positive, the other perfectly healthy. The twins share their fears, hopes, and secrets about growing up together with this reality between them.

A Burden to Be Well
by Karen Brown, edited by Mary Beth Kirchner (WFCR, 2006)
Much has been said and written about the siblings of children with chronic illness, but far less has been studied about the siblings of children with severe mental illness. Siblings’ needs often go unmet despite their suffering in their own right, from trauma, guilt, grief, and the burden of heavy responsibilities.

Featured Music:

Doctor Rockit, "Lullaby for William," Childish Music (Staubgold, 2005) 
Melodium, "Flacana 5," Flacana Flacana (Audio Dregs, 2006) 
Yuichiro Fujimoto, "Small Mountain," Komorebi (Smalltown Supersound, 2004)