The people we encountered in India were amazing. You see, the operation I had back in June hadn’t healed because of the re-occurrence of the tumor, and the radiation. In fact, there was an open sore, and I could even squirt water through a hole in my cheek! I thought that was pretty cool, actually, but when I told my oncologist that, he just shook his head.
Jasmine Seller, India
The sore was getting worse, and others were appearing. There was drainage, and it looked a mess. So, I started wearing a surgical mask stuffed with a bandage across my face. I hung it from my right ear, and taped it to my face on the left so it didn’t cover my mouth. It did look a little strange.
Now, the people in India don’t seem to have a concept of personal space. Not like we in the West have, at least. They will come right up to you and ask you the most personal questions. It can be a bit disconcerting. So, waiters, shopkeepers, auto rickshaw drivers, anyone, would ask me straight out, “What’s wrong with your face?” One time we were waiting to cross a busy street when a car stopped right in front of us, blocking traffic, the window rolls down, and the man inside asked, “What’s wrong with your face?”
Do you know what the response was when I told them? Every time, without fail, even the guy in the car, they would kind of roll their eyes and said, “oh, I will pray for you.” It didn’t matter if they were Hindu, Moslem or Christian, that was always the response.