faces

I went back to the disabled adults' group on Friday. It was similar to Wednesday in many ways. There was the woman who was so appreciative of the exercises I gave her, and there was the man who left saying "But I'm poor.". That simple phrase caused me to burst into tears (after he left). All in all, I feel like sending polio vaccines and an orthopedic surgeon (specifically to correct club feet) is the best option for future generations of Congolese; an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, no? My time with the group left me saddened on a variety of levels.

But there are a few faces that haunt me. One is L., who, I think, had polio as a child. To note, when I was listening to people's stories I heard countless times "I was born well, but then...[usually around age two]...I got a high fever and then was paralyzed." Most people I spoke with never got a diagnosis, but given their presentation my best guess is polio. L. walks on his hands as his legs never regained any strength. His upper body is incredibly, incredibly strong. I watched him "walk" in and then reach up to the chair and pull himself onto it without hesitation or wobbling. He told me how he mends shoes to try to make a living, is married with multiple (I think 5 or 8, but I can't remember) kids. But what continues to reverberate in my heart is that he walks ten kilometers (~6 miles) on his hands to get to this disabled adults' group. That's a long time by foot, let alone by hand. Many/most? roads in Congo are dirt. This is the rainy season. So he may fairly regularly walk about twelve miles on his hands in the mud.

I may not be able to help most of the people I saw, but when someone is on my heart like L., I must act. I'm hoping to buy him a hand bike, which will allow him to be off the ground and closer to most people's height. I'm still trying to figure out the cost of the bike and how to get it to him, but those feel like small logistics. I can only pray that the bike will allow him to feel more of the dignity he deserves.



(I have a picture of L. I'll post once I get pictures uploaded.)