Week 8

Although we did not have clinic the day after Thanksgiving (the doctors didn't want to wake up early!), there was clinic the week before. 


It was a pretty relaxed week. We had three doctors show up, so luckily everyone was taken care of! I did have an experience which I found moving and really showed me a lot about the people who I am helping with my volunteering. I was running a couple minutes late, so I hurried out of my car when I arrived at the clinic. I guess my wallet was at the top of my bag, because apparently it fell out of my bag and onto the street. About 20 minutes after I arrived, one of the volunteers handed me my wallet (which I hadn't even noticed had fallen out of my bag), and said that one of the patients had found it on the street. I was so grateful, and really touched by the fact that someone so poor would still be a good enough person to return a wallet that they found on the street, without taking anything out of it. 


Sometimes it is so easy to judge people because of their appearances or the conditions in which they live. Honestly, I would have thought that some of the people who come to the clinic would have found the wallet and kept it for themselves. However, this week's incident really showed me that you can't judge a book by it's cover, and that these truly are good people who just live in unfortunate conditions. In a city with such a large Hispanic population, it is important not to judge people by their financial or economic situations, and to remember that they are people who deserve dignity (and access to healthcare), just the same as anyone else.