Yo no tengo religion

Another close call with the stones and concrete. I guess the saying “keep the rubber side down” applies to me. Today, I had been pushing it a bit distance-wise so I suppose it is no surprise that I had an awkward almost-fall late in the day. The embarrassing thing is that it happened in Parque Central (the most crowded, happening place in Antigua). I got a lot of strange looks, especially since I did a funny jig to rebalance myself. Most of the time though, I enjoy the anonymity that comes with wearing long, flowing skirts and the fact that so many Guatemalans suffered from polio so a lot of people do not have a normal gait. I also like the fact that I can pass off as a light-skinned Guatemaltecos. The majority of the employees in Transiciones are in wheelchairs because of polio not because of SCI’s. That surprised me. There are so many avoidable causes of disabilities here. I don’t envy the people who have to tackle the problem. The best thing would be if Transiciones did not have to exist.

I was trying to tell Maria that I didn’t know if God existed or not and the subject was the cause of many wars (Guerra – I have a really hard time pronouncing that word). She was ferociously adamant that God existed above, and I totally understand why. Life would be impossible to bear if she didn’t have faith in something because her life is so hard. Needless to say, I thought it wise not to discuss the concept of atheism further. 

I was made aware of an alternative way of looking at wheelchairs. Instead of viewing it as a product, a better way to look at them is to see them as part of a service delivery model for patients. That totally makes more sense.