health on the shelf

When I talk to people in The States about my life in Mexico, one of the first questions they raise is health care.

I am always ready for the question.  If you have been following this blog for any time, you know how highly I think of the Mexican medical system.  The doctors are well-trained and more interested in relationships than in generating income.  And, as a direct result, Mexican health care is affordable.

But that is not really what concerns the Americans I meet.  The true worry hangs low in the subtext because America is a land where certain issues cannot be stated aloud.  Especially, when the topic has the potential of conjuring up that deadly, conversation-stopping appellation.  Racist!

Some will whisper their concerns out of the earshot of polite society.  "Aren't you afraid of all the -- diseases?  I hear the place is filthy."

I am always frank.  Yes, my little village is very dusty.  And our sewage infrastructure could use a bit of work.  But, filthy?  No.

As for diseases, we get the occasional Dengue outbreak -- just like The States.  And a lot of us contract worms -- like people throughout the developed world.

But I must admit I have never seen a display in Mexico like the one I saw yesterday in the Bend Walmart.

"Lice Treatment."  A full shelf from top to bottom.

This may be the last time I feel the need to defend health in Mexico.