Sorry, Not Dead Yet!: A Tapestry of Inspiration

by Sven Paardekooper

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Author: Sven Paardekooper

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform

Paperback:
ISBN 10: 1490396802
ISBN 13: 978-1490396804

Sorry, Not Dead Yet! tells the empowering story of Sven Paardekooper, a young immigrant living in Los Angeles. Seemingly well on his way to the pursuit of his own happiness, he gets stopped dead in his tracks with a devastating diagnosis. What follows is the chronicled loss of his identity, place in life and self worth. We read as his life falls into despair, drug addiction and abandonment. We join him as he starts to rebuild himself, understand his lessons and rejoice as he conquers his demons and defies the odds. Written in the form of editorials, Sven is blatantly honest as he takes the reader through the good, the bad, the funny and ugly parts of life. An inspiration for anyone facing hardship or demons in their lives, his story is that of all of us: how to become the best person we can be.

About the Author

I was born and raised in The Netherlands, Europe. After graduating college in 1992, I decided to move to Los Angeles and commence my pursuit of happiness. With a professional degree in accounting under my belt, my career has included domestic television syndication for the children’s show “The New Zoo Revue,” being a personal assistant for such newsworthy celebrities as Kathleen Sullivan, David Carradine and best-selling author J. Randy Taraborrelli and even a venture in the corporate environment. Yet, none of these experiences prepared me for the road ahead. I have had many jobs and have worn many different hats, but I never thought of myself as a writer. When I started to write it was to preserve my sanity and to get whatever thoughts meandering inside my head outside and exposed for reflection. It has become the only way I know how to process and manage the events that are happening in my life. It is just me, Sven, writing about what I feel inside, about my life, and the lessons I am trying to learn. Almost 12 years have passed since I found out I was HIV+. Over the course of those years, every aspect of my life has changed. Today, I have written over 300 pages about my life; I have been interviewed twice and saw my award winning poem published. A number of my articles have received international recognition and my personal website caught the attention of Bunim-Muray Productions. I contributed to the Nebraska HIV prevention campaign, I have spoken at seminars about my experiences and lessons learned. In 2005 the City of Los Angeles presented me with a Certificate of Commendation for all of my efforts. Today, I happily live in Dallas with my partner, George. Not a day goes by where I do not realize how amazingly blessed my life has become. The gratitude and fulfillment of where I am today is only amplified because I remember the road it took to get here. And I wouldn’t change a single thing. All of this happened because I tested positive, re-engaged in living, applied what I learned to my own life, and watched as my entire life become just that: a complete Positive. While my life has changed completely, the one thing that remains the same is my desire to make a difference in people’s lives and to be remembered for that effect. For in the end, isn’t that really what we all want—just to be remembered? To have left a legacy. My name is Sven