June 17, 2018-June 24, 2018.
Destination: Bocas Del Toro, Panama
Purpose of Travel: Visited communities to provide free dental care to those without access to such.
To whom it may concern,
I am not one to normally write about instances I have experienced or situations that have otherwise changed whatever perceptions of the world I may have in this lifetime. I don't post long instagram captions, nor do I post rants on twitter to express whatever little bit of emotional distress I may be experiencing.
I decided to embark on a journey to an island in Panama otherwise known as Bocas Del Toro. While there, our group, Floating Dentists, provided free dental care to two communities that have little to no access to such.
With that being said, my purpose for writing this is not to bore you with an incessant amount of facts that pose no relevance to your life, but rather to provide you with a series of stories to the images I captured throughout my experience. As well thought out and clever as most instagram captions may be, I felt as though 140 characters would not have been of much service for one to grasp the ways in which these people truly live.
It is an attempt to portray a lifestyle that we as Americans cannot even begin to fathom...
...Or at least I couldn’t.
We are educated on the poverty that is prevalent throughout more than 60% of humanity.
We are exposed to the matter.
We sympathize towards this matter.
We think we understand what these people are going through.
Funny thing is, what I realized on this trip is that all we are taught is solely a glimpse of the perpetual hardship that plagues the lives of impoverished populations around the world.
Imagine that your bed, each and every night, was a 6 by 4 foot blanket. No mattress.
And dare I say it?!
...No mattress pad.
In Bocas Del Toro, food is scarce and water is most often unfiltered and unsafe. California water for these marginalized communities would be an ABSOLUTE LUXURY.
There are no government issued regulations that protect the health and welfare of these people who are constantly facing ailments due to their living conditions.
There is no desire to provide any form of welfare for these families.
Henceforth, no welfare system.
35% of the U.S. population rely on the welfare system that this nation provides. Imagine the number of Panamanians who would benefit from such a reform.
There are no homeless shelters.
There are no food stamps.
Living as victims of such dehumanizing conditions, the people of these communities are left to fend for themselves, and their loved ones, without the proper resources to do so.
It is 4:26 a.m. and you wake up in cold sweats. Your muscles ache. Your head is throbbing. There is a Kaiser Permanente down the street. You have a premium form of health insurance. You check yourself into urgent care and you are out before 8 a.m with JUST enough time to get to school
Now put yourself in the shoes of an impoverished Panamanian. It is 4:26 a.m. and you wake up in cold sweats. Your muscles ache. Your head is throbbing. Except in this case, there is no Kaiser Permanente down the street.
The nearest health clinic is about a thirty minute drive away give or take.
Key word: "Drive"
Cars are not as easily accessible in indigenous communities as they would be in places like Denver, Colorado or even Calabasas, California.
In Bocas Del Toro, food is scarce and water is most often unfiltered and unsafe. California water for these marginalized communities would be an ABSOLUTE LUXURY.
There are no government issued regulations that protect the health and welfare of these people who are constantly facing ailments due to their living conditions.
There is no desire to provide any form of welfare for these families.
Henceforth, no welfare system.
35% of the U.S. population rely on the welfare system that this nation provides. Imagine the number of Panamanians who would benefit from such a reform.
There are no homeless shelters.
There are no food stamps.
Living as victims of such dehumanizing conditions, the people of these communities are left to fend for themselves, and their loved ones, without the proper resources to do so.
It is 4:26 a.m. and you wake up in cold sweats. Your muscles ache. Your head is throbbing. There is a Kaiser Permanente down the street. You have a premium form of health insurance. You check yourself into urgent care and you are out before 8 a.m with JUST enough time to get to school
Now put yourself in the shoes of an impoverished Panamanian. It is 4:26 a.m. and you wake up in cold sweats. Your muscles ache. Your head is throbbing. Except in this case, there is no Kaiser Permanente down the street.
The nearest health clinic is about a thirty minute drive away give or take.
Key word: "Drive"
Cars are not as easily accessible in indigenous communities as they would be in places like Denver, Colorado or even Calabasas, California.
But then again, we have Birds now so there's also that.
"Birds in Panama". Now THAT'S a business pitch heard around the corporate world if you ask me.
Anywho, lets re focus back to the notion that you are an impoverished Panamanian individual suffering from a yet to be determined illness. shall we?
You do not have premium health insurance. And in addition to this, you have about $3.75 to your name. You are forced to suffer with little to no means of medical assistance.
It was our first full day in the second community. There was minimal work left to be done at my station.
My station was intake.
This is Elliot doing intake on one of our patients. Isn't he just the sweetest? Don't worry, it took me time to look past his mustache as well but there really is more to him than meets than meets the eye.
It was our first full day in the second community. There was minimal work left to be done at my station.
My station was intake.
This is Elliot doing intake on one of our patients. Isn't he just the sweetest? Don't worry, it took me time to look past his mustache as well but there really is more to him than meets than meets the eye.
Eye
Ey
E
A
Ai..
Ai (pronounced 'eye'), one of our nurse volunteers, asked if my partner Daniel and I would like to go on a house visit with her.
Without hesitation, we said yes.
It was an opportunity of a lifetime. To witness, firsthand, how medical assistance is provided in a region that lacks a majority of supplies that the United States is more than privileged to be given easy access to.
I was curious.
I was intrigued.
I was..nervous.
This is the home we visited.
In front of me, a woman lay motionless and weak. Her bed was made up of several towels and placed at the corner of their kitchen. Unfortunately, in order to respect the patient and avoid making her feel uncomfortable, I refrained from taking pictures.
Photos tend to make people feel uncomfortable.
I'm usually the one getting "pc: @talsaharrr" on instagram because photos make ME feel uncomfortable.
Exhibit A.
Thanks Bates!!!
This woman suffered from edema in her legs, possible kidney failure, and a heart condition. She was given medication by the Floating Doctors group three months prior to our trip. It was Ai's job to come and monitor the effectiveness of the medication.
One pill was a diarietic and was given to her in order to relieve pressure in her heart. The other was to reduce inflammation in her legs. She took a half a pill. On the first day it was given to her. Three months prior to our visit.
Half of a pill!?
On the first day, three months prior to this follow-up visit!?
How were we supposed to see if the medication had helped her if she hadn’t regularly taken the proper pills?!
Ai began explaining how "a lot of these families are not told what they are given and why certain medications makes them feel the way they do. She was not sure why she was nauseas (the diarretic pill) and when she went to the hospital they did not explain it to her. She had no money so they sent her home."
We couldn’t even be upset. It was not the family’s fault nor this poor woman’s fault.
In the United States, people are told what they are getting surgery on, why they are getting the procedure done, and how to care for the illness/wound. In panama they are told nothing.Absolutely nothing.
As a woman imagine getting your tubes tied. Reproducing is no longer an option. However, you were not told what the procedure was nor the reproductive consequences of the procedure.
This is what medical care in Panama is like, and it is a reflection of what other third world countries must also endure.
The patients are uninformed.
They are not cared for.
If a region of the country provides "no economic benefits TO the country" they are deemed unimportant, and are therefore left to suffer.
This is how Kaitlyn had exemplified the ways in which these communities are treated.
Kaitlyn.
We met her on our second day at the new community. She is a Peace Corps volunteer.
Might I add that Peace Corp volunteers are the saints of our generation. They volunteer two full years of their lives solely for the purpose of helping others.
SELFLESSNESS. This is selflessness at its absolute finest.
It was evident that the mistreatment of the Panamanian communities angered her. She had voiced her views about how unfairly these people are treated.
On multiple occasions she found herself explaining to these individuals how the world is actually round and not, in fact, flat.
"She is their Galileo of the twenty-first century..!" I thought to myself.
This was a concept I found quite difficult to grasp. It is a way of life that I have only ever witnessed on a 40" flatscreen T.V...Ironic isn’t it?
Kaitlyn Mansoorieh is going to save the world one day - you heard it here first..
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Mama Coco
This elderly woman provided us with no name. I call her "Mama Coco". A pseudo name I deemed most fitting.
She walked 40 minutes assuming that we would be able to provide her with medical assistance.
See, the thing is, the only way the communities of Bocas Del Toro gain knowledge of our arrival is through word of mouth. It’s a lot like playing telephone at the dinner table. You start by whispering:
"Sally Sold Seashells by the Seashell Shore..."
And SOMEHOW, thirteen family members later, your Aunt Karen at the end of that long rectangular table hollers out:
"Sally Saw a Stripper by the Stripper Pole!"
First of all, no Aunt Karen, Sally did not see a stripper by the stripper pole.
Second of all, my point is that miscommunication is easy to present itself, and most certainly has its consequences. As news is delivered to each community, information is left out or wrongly addressed.
There is no texting, dming, or facebook messaging to properly inform these families of the service that is being provided to them.
She was in pain. With each step came agony. Her legs throbbing. Imagine walking to the corner store, but with each step you stepped upon 14 freshly sharpened needles. That is what this woman felt.
Kevin tells her we work solely on teeth and that we are unable to provide her with any form of medical assistance. With disappointment, the old woman nodded her head ever so slightly and proceeded to walk the long 40 minutes back to her community.
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Bocas Del Toro:
Panama is a country where 56% of its people live far below the poverty line. The country’s economic system exploits the poor by making them poorer, and benefits the rich by making them richer. Only those who have the money to receive forms of higher education are able to obtain higher paying jobs, receive medical care, and ultimately have a higher quality of life.
This is an ongoing cycle.
These are the two communities we visited when on this trip. Rent per one house averaged at about $30 per month.
I would be lucky if $30 lasted me a solid three hours considering the uncanny amount of flash sales that Urban Outfitters so generously emails me about.
Screw you Urban Outfitters.
The rent, however, does make sense.
The houses are held together by long planks of wood. There are no fancy locks. There are no window curtains. There are no bug preventative screens.
Laundry is washed with dirty water, and hung on thin ropes in between homes.
Clean and well-kept bathrooms are something the poor can only dream of.
This is where we urinated. "You can just Pee on these rocks. It will stream off of them" our group leader said.
"Bet." I respectfully said back.
This is me sitting on a toilet. It was the only toilet I came across throughout our four days of clinic.
Liberating would be the only word that seems best fitting when describing the bundle of emotions I was feeling.
___
Chicken, rice, & beans.
These are what I believed to be Panamanian delicacies. Aside from the plantains of course.
We saw plantains EVERYWHERE, but that is beside the point.
Every day for lunch and every day for dinner we were served rice and a choice of black beans or lentils. We ran out of chicken after the second day.
A blessing in disguise taking into account that I, Tal Sahar, somehow managed to beat Traveler’s Diareah.
(I know. I already put that under the "Skills" section of my resume. Don’t worry.)
Any-who, the food was absolutely and without a doubt delicious. I dont know what it is about Panamanian seasonings but Montreal Steak Seasoning and Lawry's Seasoned Salt have nothin' on em I’ll tell you that.
Dinner was a time where we all gathered together and willingly spent a phone-less thirty minutes with one another.
This group was awesome. Laughter filled the air in such a way that it seemed unhinged for any and all individuals within our group to sit in silence. A smile canvased across the faces of each and every one of us.
As cliche as this may sound, the aura in the room made my heart warm. Like finding the Matza during Passover warm.
Pure bliss is how I would describe it.
It being the food of course.
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"Yo soy Gringa Loca"
When in Bocas, I attempted to speak Spanish though it was evident I had little to no idea what the hell I was saying.
Despite that, I still managed to make a few friends.
Eliot was one of them. He was funny, though most definitely a troublemaker.
His confidence was undeniable.
"Hola, Me llamo Alta".
For those of you who may not know Spanish, this translates to: "Hi, My name is Tall" and not with one L.
Take it upon yourself to picture the facial expressions of those who came across such an introduction.
They thought I was crazy. A true ‘gringa’ for that matter. But before you judge me, I had a valid reason as to why I introduced myself in such a way.
My Spanish is a bit sup par.
Okay, VERY sub par.
I believed that the people of the communities were most likely going to laugh at my inability to speak a lick of Spanish, so I took it upon myself to ridicule my Spanish speaking abilities, or lack there of, BEFORE they were given the chance to.
I'm not one to brag but it was a clever approach if I say so myself.
This was Elliot.
These were Elliot’s bff’s (yes. I’m in there because Im one of Elliot’s bff’s. Self declared nonetheless).
Though I couldn’t really communicate with them, they still (for some really strange and unimaginable reason) wanted to hangout with me.
Me.
They wanted to hangout with..
..me.
It was several hours after I had met this little guy. He walked up and placed a thin red bracelet around my wrist. He looked up at me and smiled from ear to ear.
"Gracias amigo. Me gusta mucho!" I told him.
Luckily, taking Spanish 1 my freshman year of high school taught me something - how to give thanks. Gracias Senora Sason!
It was evident that gifting me with this red bracelet made him as happy as it made me. It was that sense of acceptance.
FEELING SPECIAL WAS AN UNDERSTATEMENT.
This was like when Regina George brought Cady Heron into her group. I was that IT girl!
..Until I wasn’t.
Tania came up about a minute and a half later and showed me the EXACT SAME BRACELET Elliot had just placed on my wrist.
Ever heard of the phrase "heartbroken"?
Well, yea. 18 hours into my trip and I already managed to get myself hurt. A sorry excuse for a responsible adult huh.
Though being the person that I am, I chose not to jump to conclusions and simply reflect on the situation. It took about thirty seconds but I eventually forgave him. I realized he had just given her a bracelet because he wanted a spanish speaking friend to go along with his non Spanish speaking BEST friend.
See guys, Elliot and I are fine. Growth in a relationship is key and jumping to conclusions is never the answer...for the most part.
However, still bitter about the situation (*cough* *cough*), I took it upon myself to make some new friends of my own.
This was a newly found and unexpected friendship.
This is a story about how I met a young fellow who goes by the name of Francisco Abrego.
I journal. Pretty lame right?
Wrong.
Fernando thought it was pretty frickin cool. He even joined me on the occasion. Fernando was ten years old and stood at about 4’9. He was shy and quiet at first. I attempted to communicate in whatever little Spanish I knew though it ~surprisingly~ didn’t seem to work.
He grabbed my journal and began drawing pictures.
He asked me how to recite words in English and I him..in Spanish of course.
This is what came about.
We doodled for an hour and half together.
Best. Playdate. Ever.
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. Dental care .
A healthcare profession that is in dire need amongst third world communities.
Though maintaining an appearance does not deem urgent when taking into regard the cost of dental care, maintaining good oral hygiene goes far beyond the confines of a beautiful smile and some pearly white teeth.
Heart disease, decay, respiratory infection, stroke.
These are just a few of the many long term health related misfortunes that arise due to the the lack of dental care provided to these indigenous communities.
Throughout this trip I witnessed decay in ways I did not know existed.
Calculus.
This is a term I was completely and utterly unfamiliar with. I even had to ask Kevin to repeat himself on multiple different occasions because I thought I that maybe my hearing may have just been a bit off.
It was not.
It might come to a surprise to some of you when I tell you that this term has absolutely nothing to do with derivatives and everything to do with decay.
A calculus is a form of hardened decay and when I say hardened, I mean HARDENED.
It essentially looks like a new formed tooth. I was, as we kids say now a days:
‘shook’.
It took nearly 20 minutes to rid one patient of the calculus that canvased the entirety of his back molars.
Blood. Everywhere.
*For the sake of your sanity, however, I will not provide a picture of the decay but here is a link in case you find yourself lying awake at night imagining what it could it possibly look like*
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calculus_(dental)
For these next few cases, I will provide pictures.
I’d like to first show you how the tools were set up. One because it was the most important station of this clinic. Without the proper tools at hand, there are a plethora of different procedures in which the dentists would not be able to conduct.
Two, because I helped set it up. Duh.
Sterilizatation was the most important aspect of both clinics. If the tools are not properly sterilized, the patient could receive infections that would cause harm in ways far beyond that of a simple cavity.
This is our group setting up shop. Pretty cool right!!!!!!!!! I KNOW!!!!!!
Below I added a few pictures of some patients we cared for. Proceed with caution!
or so they say..
This patient had a cavity that canvased across the lining of his two front teeth.
Before: A hole present after successfully the cavity.
After: A filling that successfully encloses the space between the tooth.
He was cheesing the rest of that week - I’ll tell you that much.
After this woman’s appointment, Mario is seen placing fluoride across the surfaces of her teeth in order to maintain and strengthen them.
but..Same!!! (Hehe)
__
This is what a tray looked like post-extraction.
When we suffer from tooth that is badly decayed a simple root canal would most often do the trick.
Sadly, in places like Bocas Del Toro, a tooth extraction is often times the only way in which dentists are able to mend these problems.
Imagine having to get 5 teeth extracted all in one sitting!?
But get this. Ever walked into a dentist office and heard a little kid screaming as though someone just ate their last set of dinonuggets? Yea. It is not a fun sound to hear.
Surpisingly, most of the little people we tended to were very far from that. They were unbelievably well behaved. Not one hoot and not one holler. Safe to assume that my ability to not look seemingly confused (for once) helped?
This one kid actually seemed to like..
..everything ABOUT dentistry.
Who knew Pronamel had the ability to make a young child laugh so genuinely happy, or is it the bag of COCO’s that did the trick?
I guess the world will never know so I’m going to go ahead and argue that it was most likely the ProNamel.
It was nothing short of an absolute pleasure to be within the same vescinity as these children. Their love for life was unwavering and it did not go unnoticed.
SO, I felt it only be fair to present you with a few more photos to better exemplify the personalities that lied within the minds of these little minions that roamed the streets of Bocas Del Toro.
Hope this helps.
Pre-Picture: She ran across the table as this man aggressively sliced through the center of this coconut. Her head was only CENTIMETERS away from the knife and this how she reacts. If it were me, I’d probably start crying...hysterically.
Kids are awesome.
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Not all Heroes Wear Capes..at least not these three.
I say this because I could not have experienced a trip as fulfilling as this one without the presence of our three extroardinary dentists.
Three dentists to service two different communities each made up of nearly 70 residents?
It came as a shock to me when we somehow managed to see each and every individual on the patient list.
The humidity was at an all time high. At least for our group.
(You can practically see the sweat drip off the sides of Elliot’s cute little pre pubescent mustache.)
Santa Barbara tends to maintain the same 'Sunny and 75' degree weather it is most famous for so facing such adversity was not a concept far fetched.
I mean we ARE ranked #1 for best weather in the U.S. of A.:
https://www.edhat.com/news/santa-barbara-ranked-1-best-place-to-live-for-the-weather
With sweat dripping down their face throughout all hours of the day, nothing could have prepared
them for such rigorous working conditions. However, it was an admirable sight to see when they they managed to maintain a seemingly unbothered demeanor throughout each clinic.
Parched.
Famished.
It deemed unimportant to them. It was the patients that mattered most.
Ever heard of the phrase, "Not all heroes wear capes"?
Well, these were our heroes.
Our dentists for Floating Dentists 2018 inspired us in all ways unimaginable.
Dr. Kevin, Dr. Fernandez, and Dr. Rana:
We salute you.
We appreciate you.
But most importantly, We Thank You.
He spoke with a British accent that was nothing short of mesmerizing. He was a stud. A superhero in our eyes.
Not because he somehow managed to find a cure for cancer or completely rid this planet of HIV, but because he selflessly chooses to live a life not consumed by the idea of money.
"People change. Values change. I realized I wasn't happy with the things that used to motivate me to what I do. I wanted to help people. I believe in living life. So now, I work a little bit and travel here [Bocas Del Toro] to volunteer my services."
It fused an imaginary spark inside of me. How cliche..
BUT LET ME MAKE IT CLEAR: Just because a person chooses a career based on how much income they make does not, by any means, imply that they are not selfless. It was Kevin, however, that introduced me to a completely new and altruistic way of existing in this world. It was inspiring to say the absolute least.
Dr. Kevin, Thank you.
As each dentist possesses different tactics and approaches in the ways at which they practice dentistry, their desire to teach and mentor each and every one of us was unequivocally the same.
This is Dr. Fernandez.
Doesn’t he just look like he would be great at his job?
"I am so excited for you all to be here. I am excited because you guys chose to come and volunteer your service to these people who need it the most".
These were some of the first words I heard Dr. Fernandez say.
"Cliche" I thought. Though I still agreed with him because he was essentially right. We WERE all here for that same reason.
Dr. Fernandez and his ability to engage with us in a manner much deeper than that of student to teacher excited me.
It excited all twelve of us.
He made it seem as though each and every one of us were essential to the well-being of each patient.
"This is a team. We cannot successfully care for a patient on our own. If there is a complication and I need assistance what am I supposed to do? Each of you are important to the well being of our patients".
It was these words that instilled a sense of confidence in our ability that seemed completely and utterly nonexistent. Why did he have so much trust in a group of individuals with absolutely no experience?
Suturing.
Extractions.
He trusted us with any and all procedures (within reason of course). It was an instillment of confidence that many of us lacked.
No amount of words could truly exemplify the gratitude and respect we possess for you.
Dr. Fernandez, Thank You.
We were 3 hours into our 6 hour drive to the Costa Rican border. Fourteen of us scattered amongst two vans arive at this small-town restaurant.
Yes, it sold traditional Costa Rican Food.
No, I chose not to dabble in it, you know, considering travelers diarrhea and all.
Dr. Rana came and sat at my table. She asked questions that went beyond the generic "What's your major", "Why do you want to become a dentist" and "Do you have a boyfriend". She conveyed a desire to understand us as more than just students.
Dr. Rana was personal. Sort of like our Floating Dentist Mom if I say so myself. She was also a dental whiz.
Precise.
Adamant.
Working beside her was both humbling and eye opening. She bears a sense of passion that I have been privileged enough to witness only so few many times.
It was also cool to find another human being who quite possibly sweat more than I do. In case you didn’t know, one of my hobbies includes ‘persistent sweating’.
It was nice to know I wasn't alone.
Dr. Rana, Thank You.
______
Our group was made up of fifteen volunteers. Twelve of us being students.
Each coming from different upbringings, this group was incredibly diverse. Ethnic backgrounds ranged from Persian, Colombian, and Israeli all the way to Mexican, Syrian, Phillipino and of course American. With different cultures and backgrounds came alternative views and beliefs.
What I may have been comfortable with, my Colombian friend Tania may have not been.
What Mario from Mexico may have been comfortable with, Haneen from Syria may have not been.
The cool thing is, despite our different views and our different beliefs, we all excitingly came together and shared this one extroardinary experience.
These are the Floating Dentists of Panama 2018:
Elliot (@elliotpen4)
I am as excited for your future as you were for the 60 cent mimosas they sold at the Costa Rican Tienda.
Chase B (chase_bodman)
\
Chase B was our Eagle Scout. We absolutely 100% and without a doubt adore this Eagle Scout (and his Tevas). You rock Chase B.
Chase (@chase)
The nicest human being I have ever met, ever. His hair was unbelievable too for that matter. Chase hates when people comment on his hair, but here I am ..commenting on his hair.
I mean, look at that hair flow. How can someone NOT admire it??
Stefan (@stefanmarinac1)
Frat Boy. Smart Frat Boy. Very Smart Frat Boy.
Gentlemen like as well.
He sat and patiently waited a full thirty minutes until each and every person in our group had food on their plates. Being the last candidate to grab food after a full day of traveling..
..kudos to you Stefan - YOU ARE A GREAT DUDE.
Ryan D. (Mr. President) (@ryan_davis98)
This is president one of two who somehow managed to keep our entire ship afloat. We salute you in every which way Ryan Davis. You are the man the myth and most definitely the legend.
I also felt it be necessary to add that you take better portrait mode photos than anyone I have come across. Don’t sell yourself short..maybe modeling IS in your future?
I hear Crest is looking to find a new face for their product ;) @crest.
Tania J. (Mrs. President) (@taniiaa.j)
This is president two of two who somehow managed to keep our entire ship afloat. We salute you in every which way Tania Jamarillo.
She’s a gem. I promise.
Also, thanks for being my friend. I’m glad my mom didn’t have to pay anyone this time. :)
P.S. : This is when Columbia lost to England in the World Cup. Tania is Colombian. Tania was pissed. Very very pissed.
Daniel
I wouldn’t have wanted to be partnered up with anyone else homedawg.
You're a gem in a bucket full of pebbles Daniel - never forget that.
..And you managed to salvage my phone in the most finessefully savage way possible. So essentially I still owe you the world and then some.
Connie (@connielan7)
Connie is a hooper. She played at Oak Park High School. One of Calabasas High School’s few rivalries. You could imagine how pumped I was when we began exchanging names of girl’s whom we had both played against or with at some point.
Also how the heck did she manage to attract every cute, adorable, and fluffly little animal in Bocas.
Safe to assume we all possessed some form of envy towards her?
Mario
Mario you are sweet and you are genuine. You have a mind that goes far beyond whatever intellectual capacity I thought I may have had. I am sorry for ever calling you Carlos. I’d like to say it was because of my dehydrated state of mind, but I could be wrong.
Can we agree that it was all entirely out of love?
Yes! Thank You!
You are the bomb.com. Especially with the kids. Become a pediatric dentist for the sake of MY sanity okay?
Haneen (@haneenhoney)
It was your kindness and your patience that I found to be most admirable.
You worked with the kids in such a way that foreshadowed the endless amount of success you will encounter someday when embarking on whatever dentistry journey you choose to pursue.
AND
If I may add, your braiding skills are off that chi-zang!
Much Love Always girl.
Gentille (@gentillejav)
"I'll only read this if you put me in your blog".
There Gentille. You made it to my 'blog'.
You have to be one of the funniest people I have met in my 21 years, 3 months, and 27 days of existence.
Don’t change.
Remember to always hold a pencil by its eraser.
And never forget:
"You can't catch flies with honey, but you can always catch honey's being fly"
Keyan (@keyan_a)
This is a progression of Keyan relaying the story of how he woke up to two young girls blatantly staring at him through his hammock. He felt special in case you couldn’t tell.
You are so Bool, Balm, and Bollected that it resonates throughout all those around you.
Except Tania.
But that's a story for another time.
You are the G.O.A.T. Keyan Jooon.
Nick F
Nick, you are humble, you are genuine, and you are kind.
I hope that one day I am given the chance to hear you headline at Coachella.
..Or better yet - Tomorrowland!
I hope that one day I am given the chance to hear you headline at Tomorrowland.
And, uh, this is me. Tal Sahar.
@talsaharrr if we want to get more specific.
There isn’t much to say about me except that I somehow managed to go five days without a single prune, I wore the same pair of scrubs for the full duration of our week long clinic, I drank less than a gallon of water a day, and I journaled, A LOT.
I also met Abdiel. He was sweet. Played for the Panamanian National Baseball Team which is pretty awesome.
We exchanged numbers though I wasn’t really sure if we would every communicate again. Funny thing is he actually texted ME.
How cool!
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As you can probably tell, I didn't just a gain a group of friends on this journey, I gained a family.
Not consumed by our cell phones we were forced to actually get to know one another.
We were forced to partake in conversation that went far beyond present day memes and social media feuds.
It was a sense of relief.
Human connection has the ability to instill a more permanent sense of satisfaction than any instagram like, retweet, or snap streak.
"Amoure-Propre" as Jean-Jacques Rousseau once said.
Witnessing life in Bocas Del Toro was everything I did not expect it to be.
Dr. Rana said something that resonated with me.
"They don’t know what they don’t know."
Sounds pretty bland doesn’t it? When I first heard her say this I thought to myself "Well Isn’t that obvious?" But as I started to reflect more on the meaning behind this statement I realized that these people are so blind to the consumer capitalistic, technologically suffocating, and materialistically demanding society we all live in that they are able to simply enjoy the little things in life.
They don’t know what the NBA finals are.
They don’t know what an iPad Pro is.
Hopefully this doesn’t come to a complete shock to you in the way it did me, but they don’t even know what the YEEZY 500’s are.
It’s okay though, they’re not cute anyways.
My point here is that the people of Bocas Del Toro Panama live in the most simplistic and minimalistic way there is to live. Money does not drive them to depression or diminish their sense of self worth. It was fascinating to watch them find happiness within a socioeconomic setting that could have undoubtedly repudiated their ability to ever do so.
No iPads or tablets.
No Jordans and no air max’s.
It is Family.
It is Relationships.
It is Nature.
Despite their hardships, it is these things that bring the communities of Bocas Del Toro together.
All I can say is we live an incredible life. A life of privilege.
And of course everyone has their struggles and I am not diminishing that in any which way.
Though when you find yourself taking down that pint of your very own Half Baked Ben and Jerry’s , weeping in your sorrows, remember:
You have a lot to be thankful for.
(and not because you just willingly took down 1048 calories of pure sugar).
This was my trip to the island of Bocas Del Toro. I provided dental care for two very impoverished communities and I would do it all over again 10 folds.
I hope that you enjoyed reading this piece as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Best Regards,
Tal Sahar.
Ai (pronounced 'eye'), one of our nurse volunteers, asked if my partner Daniel and I would like to go on a house visit with her.
Without hesitation, we said yes.
It was an opportunity of a lifetime. To witness, firsthand, how medical assistance is provided in a region that lacks a majority of supplies that the United States is more than privileged to be given easy access to.
I was curious.
I was intrigued.
I was..nervous.
This is the home we visited.
In front of me, a woman lay motionless and weak. Her bed was made up of several towels and placed at the corner of their kitchen. Unfortunately, in order to respect the patient and avoid making her feel uncomfortable, I refrained from taking pictures.
Photos tend to make people feel uncomfortable.
I'm usually the one getting "pc: @talsaharrr" on instagram because photos make ME feel uncomfortable.
Exhibit A.
Thanks Bates!!!
This woman suffered from edema in her legs, possible kidney failure, and a heart condition. She was given medication by the Floating Doctors group three months prior to our trip. It was Ai's job to come and monitor the effectiveness of the medication.
One pill was a diarietic and was given to her in order to relieve pressure in her heart. The other was to reduce inflammation in her legs. She took a half a pill. On the first day it was given to her. Three months prior to our visit.
Half of a pill!?
On the first day, three months prior to this follow-up visit!?
How were we supposed to see if the medication had helped her if she hadn’t regularly taken the proper pills?!
Ai began explaining how "a lot of these families are not told what they are given and why certain medications makes them feel the way they do. She was not sure why she was nauseas (the diarretic pill) and when she went to the hospital they did not explain it to her. She had no money so they sent her home."
We couldn’t even be upset. It was not the family’s fault nor this poor woman’s fault.
In the United States, people are told what they are getting surgery on, why they are getting the procedure done, and how to care for the illness/wound. In panama they are told nothing.Absolutely nothing.
As a woman imagine getting your tubes tied. Reproducing is no longer an option. However, you were not told what the procedure was nor the reproductive consequences of the procedure.
This is what medical care in Panama is like, and it is a reflection of what other third world countries must also endure.
The patients are uninformed.
They are not cared for.
If a region of the country provides "no economic benefits TO the country" they are deemed unimportant, and are therefore left to suffer.
This is how Kaitlyn had exemplified the ways in which these communities are treated.
Kaitlyn.
We met her on our second day at the new community. She is a Peace Corps volunteer.
Might I add that Peace Corp volunteers are the saints of our generation. They volunteer two full years of their lives solely for the purpose of helping others.
SELFLESSNESS. This is selflessness at its absolute finest.
It was evident that the mistreatment of the Panamanian communities angered her. She had voiced her views about how unfairly these people are treated.
On multiple occasions she found herself explaining to these individuals how the world is actually round and not, in fact, flat.
"She is their Galileo of the twenty-first century..!" I thought to myself.
This was a concept I found quite difficult to grasp. It is a way of life that I have only ever witnessed on a 40" flatscreen T.V...Ironic isn’t it?
Kaitlyn Mansoorieh is going to save the world one day - you heard it here first..
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Mama Coco
This elderly woman provided us with no name. I call her "Mama Coco". A pseudo name I deemed most fitting.
She walked 40 minutes assuming that we would be able to provide her with medical assistance.
See, the thing is, the only way the communities of Bocas Del Toro gain knowledge of our arrival is through word of mouth. It’s a lot like playing telephone at the dinner table. You start by whispering:
"Sally Sold Seashells by the Seashell Shore..."
And SOMEHOW, thirteen family members later, your Aunt Karen at the end of that long rectangular table hollers out:
"Sally Saw a Stripper by the Stripper Pole!"
First of all, no Aunt Karen, Sally did not see a stripper by the stripper pole.
Second of all, my point is that miscommunication is easy to present itself, and most certainly has its consequences. As news is delivered to each community, information is left out or wrongly addressed.
There is no texting, dming, or facebook messaging to properly inform these families of the service that is being provided to them.
She was in pain. With each step came agony. Her legs throbbing. Imagine walking to the corner store, but with each step you stepped upon 14 freshly sharpened needles. That is what this woman felt.
Kevin tells her we work solely on teeth and that we are unable to provide her with any form of medical assistance. With disappointment, the old woman nodded her head ever so slightly and proceeded to walk the long 40 minutes back to her community.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Bocas Del Toro:
Panama is a country where 56% of its people live far below the poverty line. The country’s economic system exploits the poor by making them poorer, and benefits the rich by making them richer. Only those who have the money to receive forms of higher education are able to obtain higher paying jobs, receive medical care, and ultimately have a higher quality of life.
This is an ongoing cycle.
These are the two communities we visited when on this trip. Rent per one house averaged at about $30 per month.
I would be lucky if $30 lasted me a solid three hours considering the uncanny amount of flash sales that Urban Outfitters so generously emails me about.
Screw you Urban Outfitters.
The rent, however, does make sense.
The houses are held together by long planks of wood. There are no fancy locks. There are no window curtains. There are no bug preventative screens.
Laundry is washed with dirty water, and hung on thin ropes in between homes.
Clean and well-kept bathrooms are something the poor can only dream of.
This is where we urinated. "You can just Pee on these rocks. It will stream off of them" our group leader said.
"Bet." I respectfully said back.
This is me sitting on a toilet. It was the only toilet I came across throughout our four days of clinic.
Liberating would be the only word that seems best fitting when describing the bundle of emotions I was feeling.
___
Chicken, rice, & beans.
These are what I believed to be Panamanian delicacies. Aside from the plantains of course.
We saw plantains EVERYWHERE, but that is beside the point.
Every day for lunch and every day for dinner we were served rice and a choice of black beans or lentils. We ran out of chicken after the second day.
A blessing in disguise taking into account that I, Tal Sahar, somehow managed to beat Traveler’s Diareah.
(I know. I already put that under the "Skills" section of my resume. Don’t worry.)
Any-who, the food was absolutely and without a doubt delicious. I dont know what it is about Panamanian seasonings but Montreal Steak Seasoning and Lawry's Seasoned Salt have nothin' on em I’ll tell you that.
Dinner was a time where we all gathered together and willingly spent a phone-less thirty minutes with one another.
This group was awesome. Laughter filled the air in such a way that it seemed unhinged for any and all individuals within our group to sit in silence. A smile canvased across the faces of each and every one of us.
As cliche as this may sound, the aura in the room made my heart warm. Like finding the Matza during Passover warm.
Pure bliss is how I would describe it.
It being the food of course.
_________________________________________________________________________________
"Yo soy Gringa Loca"
When in Bocas, I attempted to speak Spanish though it was evident I had little to no idea what the hell I was saying.
Despite that, I still managed to make a few friends.
Eliot was one of them. He was funny, though most definitely a troublemaker.
His confidence was undeniable.
"Hola, Me llamo Alta".
For those of you who may not know Spanish, this translates to: "Hi, My name is Tall" and not with one L.
Take it upon yourself to picture the facial expressions of those who came across such an introduction.
They thought I was crazy. A true ‘gringa’ for that matter. But before you judge me, I had a valid reason as to why I introduced myself in such a way.
My Spanish is a bit sup par.
Okay, VERY sub par.
I believed that the people of the communities were most likely going to laugh at my inability to speak a lick of Spanish, so I took it upon myself to ridicule my Spanish speaking abilities, or lack there of, BEFORE they were given the chance to.
I'm not one to brag but it was a clever approach if I say so myself.
This was Elliot.
These were Elliot’s bff’s (yes. I’m in there because Im one of Elliot’s bff’s. Self declared nonetheless).
Though I couldn’t really communicate with them, they still (for some really strange and unimaginable reason) wanted to hangout with me.
Me.
They wanted to hangout with..
..me.
It was several hours after I had met this little guy. He walked up and placed a thin red bracelet around my wrist. He looked up at me and smiled from ear to ear.
"Gracias amigo. Me gusta mucho!" I told him.
Luckily, taking Spanish 1 my freshman year of high school taught me something - how to give thanks. Gracias Senora Sason!
It was evident that gifting me with this red bracelet made him as happy as it made me. It was that sense of acceptance.
FEELING SPECIAL WAS AN UNDERSTATEMENT.
This was like when Regina George brought Cady Heron into her group. I was that IT girl!
..Until I wasn’t.
Tania came up about a minute and a half later and showed me the EXACT SAME BRACELET Elliot had just placed on my wrist.
Ever heard of the phrase "heartbroken"?
Well, yea. 18 hours into my trip and I already managed to get myself hurt. A sorry excuse for a responsible adult huh.
Though being the person that I am, I chose not to jump to conclusions and simply reflect on the situation. It took about thirty seconds but I eventually forgave him. I realized he had just given her a bracelet because he wanted a spanish speaking friend to go along with his non Spanish speaking BEST friend.
See guys, Elliot and I are fine. Growth in a relationship is key and jumping to conclusions is never the answer...for the most part.
However, still bitter about the situation (*cough* *cough*), I took it upon myself to make some new friends of my own.
This was a newly found and unexpected friendship.
This is a story about how I met a young fellow who goes by the name of Francisco Abrego.
I journal. Pretty lame right?
Wrong.
Fernando thought it was pretty frickin cool. He even joined me on the occasion. Fernando was ten years old and stood at about 4’9. He was shy and quiet at first. I attempted to communicate in whatever little Spanish I knew though it ~surprisingly~ didn’t seem to work.
He grabbed my journal and began drawing pictures.
He asked me how to recite words in English and I him..in Spanish of course.
This is what came about.
We doodled for an hour and half together.
Best. Playdate. Ever.
_________________________________________________________________________________
. Dental care .
A healthcare profession that is in dire need amongst third world communities.
Though maintaining an appearance does not deem urgent when taking into regard the cost of dental care, maintaining good oral hygiene goes far beyond the confines of a beautiful smile and some pearly white teeth.
Heart disease, decay, respiratory infection, stroke.
These are just a few of the many long term health related misfortunes that arise due to the the lack of dental care provided to these indigenous communities.
Throughout this trip I witnessed decay in ways I did not know existed.
Calculus.
This is a term I was completely and utterly unfamiliar with. I even had to ask Kevin to repeat himself on multiple different occasions because I thought I that maybe my hearing may have just been a bit off.
It was not.
It might come to a surprise to some of you when I tell you that this term has absolutely nothing to do with derivatives and everything to do with decay.
A calculus is a form of hardened decay and when I say hardened, I mean HARDENED.
It essentially looks like a new formed tooth. I was, as we kids say now a days:
‘shook’.
It took nearly 20 minutes to rid one patient of the calculus that canvased the entirety of his back molars.
Blood. Everywhere.
*For the sake of your sanity, however, I will not provide a picture of the decay but here is a link in case you find yourself lying awake at night imagining what it could it possibly look like*
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calculus_(dental)
For these next few cases, I will provide pictures.
I’d like to first show you how the tools were set up. One because it was the most important station of this clinic. Without the proper tools at hand, there are a plethora of different procedures in which the dentists would not be able to conduct.
Two, because I helped set it up. Duh.
Sterilizatation was the most important aspect of both clinics. If the tools are not properly sterilized, the patient could receive infections that would cause harm in ways far beyond that of a simple cavity.
This is our group setting up shop. Pretty cool right!!!!!!!!! I KNOW!!!!!!
Below I added a few pictures of some patients we cared for. Proceed with caution!
or so they say..
This patient had a cavity that canvased across the lining of his two front teeth.
Before: A hole present after successfully the cavity.
After: A filling that successfully encloses the space between the tooth.
He was cheesing the rest of that week - I’ll tell you that much.
After this woman’s appointment, Mario is seen placing fluoride across the surfaces of her teeth in order to maintain and strengthen them.
but..Same!!! (Hehe)
__
This is what a tray looked like post-extraction.
When we suffer from tooth that is badly decayed a simple root canal would most often do the trick.
Sadly, in places like Bocas Del Toro, a tooth extraction is often times the only way in which dentists are able to mend these problems.
Imagine having to get 5 teeth extracted all in one sitting!?
But get this. Ever walked into a dentist office and heard a little kid screaming as though someone just ate their last set of dinonuggets? Yea. It is not a fun sound to hear.
Surpisingly, most of the little people we tended to were very far from that. They were unbelievably well behaved. Not one hoot and not one holler. Safe to assume that my ability to not look seemingly confused (for once) helped?
This one kid actually seemed to like..
..everything ABOUT dentistry.
Who knew Pronamel had the ability to make a young child laugh so genuinely happy, or is it the bag of COCO’s that did the trick?
I guess the world will never know so I’m going to go ahead and argue that it was most likely the ProNamel.
It was nothing short of an absolute pleasure to be within the same vescinity as these children. Their love for life was unwavering and it did not go unnoticed.
SO, I felt it only be fair to present you with a few more photos to better exemplify the personalities that lied within the minds of these little minions that roamed the streets of Bocas Del Toro.
Hope this helps.
Pre-Picture: She ran across the table as this man aggressively sliced through the center of this coconut. Her head was only CENTIMETERS away from the knife and this how she reacts. If it were me, I’d probably start crying...hysterically.
Kids are awesome.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Not all Heroes Wear Capes..at least not these three.
I say this because I could not have experienced a trip as fulfilling as this one without the presence of our three extroardinary dentists.
Three dentists to service two different communities each made up of nearly 70 residents?
It came as a shock to me when we somehow managed to see each and every individual on the patient list.
The humidity was at an all time high. At least for our group.
(You can practically see the sweat drip off the sides of Elliot’s cute little pre pubescent mustache.)
Santa Barbara tends to maintain the same 'Sunny and 75' degree weather it is most famous for so facing such adversity was not a concept far fetched.
I mean we ARE ranked #1 for best weather in the U.S. of A.:
https://www.edhat.com/news/santa-barbara-ranked-1-best-place-to-live-for-the-weather
With sweat dripping down their face throughout all hours of the day, nothing could have prepared
them for such rigorous working conditions. However, it was an admirable sight to see when they they managed to maintain a seemingly unbothered demeanor throughout each clinic.
Parched.
Famished.
It deemed unimportant to them. It was the patients that mattered most.
Ever heard of the phrase, "Not all heroes wear capes"?
Well, these were our heroes.
Our dentists for Floating Dentists 2018 inspired us in all ways unimaginable.
Dr. Kevin, Dr. Fernandez, and Dr. Rana:
We salute you.
We appreciate you.
But most importantly, We Thank You.
He spoke with a British accent that was nothing short of mesmerizing. He was a stud. A superhero in our eyes.
Not because he somehow managed to find a cure for cancer or completely rid this planet of HIV, but because he selflessly chooses to live a life not consumed by the idea of money.
"People change. Values change. I realized I wasn't happy with the things that used to motivate me to what I do. I wanted to help people. I believe in living life. So now, I work a little bit and travel here [Bocas Del Toro] to volunteer my services."
It fused an imaginary spark inside of me. How cliche..
BUT LET ME MAKE IT CLEAR: Just because a person chooses a career based on how much income they make does not, by any means, imply that they are not selfless. It was Kevin, however, that introduced me to a completely new and altruistic way of existing in this world. It was inspiring to say the absolute least.
Dr. Kevin, Thank you.
As each dentist possesses different tactics and approaches in the ways at which they practice dentistry, their desire to teach and mentor each and every one of us was unequivocally the same.
This is Dr. Fernandez.
Doesn’t he just look like he would be great at his job?
"I am so excited for you all to be here. I am excited because you guys chose to come and volunteer your service to these people who need it the most".
These were some of the first words I heard Dr. Fernandez say.
"Cliche" I thought. Though I still agreed with him because he was essentially right. We WERE all here for that same reason.
Dr. Fernandez and his ability to engage with us in a manner much deeper than that of student to teacher excited me.
It excited all twelve of us.
He made it seem as though each and every one of us were essential to the well-being of each patient.
"This is a team. We cannot successfully care for a patient on our own. If there is a complication and I need assistance what am I supposed to do? Each of you are important to the well being of our patients".
It was these words that instilled a sense of confidence in our ability that seemed completely and utterly nonexistent. Why did he have so much trust in a group of individuals with absolutely no experience?
Suturing.
Extractions.
He trusted us with any and all procedures (within reason of course). It was an instillment of confidence that many of us lacked.
No amount of words could truly exemplify the gratitude and respect we possess for you.
Dr. Fernandez, Thank You.
We were 3 hours into our 6 hour drive to the Costa Rican border. Fourteen of us scattered amongst two vans arive at this small-town restaurant.
Yes, it sold traditional Costa Rican Food.
No, I chose not to dabble in it, you know, considering travelers diarrhea and all.
Dr. Rana came and sat at my table. She asked questions that went beyond the generic "What's your major", "Why do you want to become a dentist" and "Do you have a boyfriend". She conveyed a desire to understand us as more than just students.
Dr. Rana was personal. Sort of like our Floating Dentist Mom if I say so myself. She was also a dental whiz.
Precise.
Adamant.
Working beside her was both humbling and eye opening. She bears a sense of passion that I have been privileged enough to witness only so few many times.
It was also cool to find another human being who quite possibly sweat more than I do. In case you didn’t know, one of my hobbies includes ‘persistent sweating’.
It was nice to know I wasn't alone.
Dr. Rana, Thank You.
______
Our group was made up of fifteen volunteers. Twelve of us being students.
Each coming from different upbringings, this group was incredibly diverse. Ethnic backgrounds ranged from Persian, Colombian, and Israeli all the way to Mexican, Syrian, Phillipino and of course American. With different cultures and backgrounds came alternative views and beliefs.
What I may have been comfortable with, my Colombian friend Tania may have not been.
What Mario from Mexico may have been comfortable with, Haneen from Syria may have not been.
The cool thing is, despite our different views and our different beliefs, we all excitingly came together and shared this one extroardinary experience.
These are the Floating Dentists of Panama 2018:
Elliot (@elliotpen4)
I am as excited for your future as you were for the 60 cent mimosas they sold at the Costa Rican Tienda.
Chase B (chase_bodman)
\Chase B was our Eagle Scout. We absolutely 100% and without a doubt adore this Eagle Scout (and his Tevas). You rock Chase B.
Chase (@chase)
The nicest human being I have ever met, ever. His hair was unbelievable too for that matter. Chase hates when people comment on his hair, but here I am ..commenting on his hair.
I mean, look at that hair flow. How can someone NOT admire it??
Stefan (@stefanmarinac1)
Frat Boy. Smart Frat Boy. Very Smart Frat Boy.
Gentlemen like as well.
He sat and patiently waited a full thirty minutes until each and every person in our group had food on their plates. Being the last candidate to grab food after a full day of traveling..
..kudos to you Stefan - YOU ARE A GREAT DUDE.
Ryan D. (Mr. President) (@ryan_davis98)
This is president one of two who somehow managed to keep our entire ship afloat. We salute you in every which way Ryan Davis. You are the man the myth and most definitely the legend.
I also felt it be necessary to add that you take better portrait mode photos than anyone I have come across. Don’t sell yourself short..maybe modeling IS in your future?
I hear Crest is looking to find a new face for their product ;) @crest.
Tania J. (Mrs. President) (@taniiaa.j)
This is president two of two who somehow managed to keep our entire ship afloat. We salute you in every which way Tania Jamarillo.
She’s a gem. I promise.
Also, thanks for being my friend. I’m glad my mom didn’t have to pay anyone this time. :)
P.S. : This is when Columbia lost to England in the World Cup. Tania is Colombian. Tania was pissed. Very very pissed.
Daniel
I wouldn’t have wanted to be partnered up with anyone else homedawg.
You're a gem in a bucket full of pebbles Daniel - never forget that.
..And you managed to salvage my phone in the most finessefully savage way possible. So essentially I still owe you the world and then some.
Connie (@connielan7)
Connie is a hooper. She played at Oak Park High School. One of Calabasas High School’s few rivalries. You could imagine how pumped I was when we began exchanging names of girl’s whom we had both played against or with at some point.
Also how the heck did she manage to attract every cute, adorable, and fluffly little animal in Bocas.
Safe to assume we all possessed some form of envy towards her?
Mario
Mario you are sweet and you are genuine. You have a mind that goes far beyond whatever intellectual capacity I thought I may have had. I am sorry for ever calling you Carlos. I’d like to say it was because of my dehydrated state of mind, but I could be wrong.
Can we agree that it was all entirely out of love?
Yes! Thank You!
You are the bomb.com. Especially with the kids. Become a pediatric dentist for the sake of MY sanity okay?
Haneen (@haneenhoney)
It was your kindness and your patience that I found to be most admirable.
You worked with the kids in such a way that foreshadowed the endless amount of success you will encounter someday when embarking on whatever dentistry journey you choose to pursue.
AND
If I may add, your braiding skills are off that chi-zang!
Much Love Always girl.
Gentille (@gentillejav)
"I'll only read this if you put me in your blog".
There Gentille. You made it to my 'blog'.
You have to be one of the funniest people I have met in my 21 years, 3 months, and 27 days of existence.
Don’t change.
Remember to always hold a pencil by its eraser.
And never forget:
"You can't catch flies with honey, but you can always catch honey's being fly"
Keyan (@keyan_a)
This is a progression of Keyan relaying the story of how he woke up to two young girls blatantly staring at him through his hammock. He felt special in case you couldn’t tell.
You are so Bool, Balm, and Bollected that it resonates throughout all those around you.
Except Tania.
But that's a story for another time.
You are the G.O.A.T. Keyan Jooon.
Nick F
Nick, you are humble, you are genuine, and you are kind.
I hope that one day I am given the chance to hear you headline at Coachella.
..Or better yet - Tomorrowland!
I hope that one day I am given the chance to hear you headline at Tomorrowland.
And, uh, this is me. Tal Sahar.
@talsaharrr if we want to get more specific.
There isn’t much to say about me except that I somehow managed to go five days without a single prune, I wore the same pair of scrubs for the full duration of our week long clinic, I drank less than a gallon of water a day, and I journaled, A LOT.
I also met Abdiel. He was sweet. Played for the Panamanian National Baseball Team which is pretty awesome.
We exchanged numbers though I wasn’t really sure if we would every communicate again. Funny thing is he actually texted ME.
How cool!
___________________________________________________________
As you can probably tell, I didn't just a gain a group of friends on this journey, I gained a family.
Not consumed by our cell phones we were forced to actually get to know one another.
We were forced to partake in conversation that went far beyond present day memes and social media feuds.
It was a sense of relief.
Human connection has the ability to instill a more permanent sense of satisfaction than any instagram like, retweet, or snap streak.
"Amoure-Propre" as Jean-Jacques Rousseau once said.
Witnessing life in Bocas Del Toro was everything I did not expect it to be.
Dr. Rana said something that resonated with me.
"They don’t know what they don’t know."
Sounds pretty bland doesn’t it? When I first heard her say this I thought to myself "Well Isn’t that obvious?" But as I started to reflect more on the meaning behind this statement I realized that these people are so blind to the consumer capitalistic, technologically suffocating, and materialistically demanding society we all live in that they are able to simply enjoy the little things in life.
They don’t know what the NBA finals are.
They don’t know what an iPad Pro is.
Hopefully this doesn’t come to a complete shock to you in the way it did me, but they don’t even know what the YEEZY 500’s are.
It’s okay though, they’re not cute anyways.
My point here is that the people of Bocas Del Toro Panama live in the most simplistic and minimalistic way there is to live. Money does not drive them to depression or diminish their sense of self worth. It was fascinating to watch them find happiness within a socioeconomic setting that could have undoubtedly repudiated their ability to ever do so.
No iPads or tablets.
No Jordans and no air max’s.
It is Family.
It is Relationships.
It is Nature.
Despite their hardships, it is these things that bring the communities of Bocas Del Toro together.
All I can say is we live an incredible life. A life of privilege.
And of course everyone has their struggles and I am not diminishing that in any which way.
Though when you find yourself taking down that pint of your very own Half Baked Ben and Jerry’s , weeping in your sorrows, remember:
You have a lot to be thankful for.
(and not because you just willingly took down 1048 calories of pure sugar).
This was my trip to the island of Bocas Del Toro. I provided dental care for two very impoverished communities and I would do it all over again 10 folds.
I hope that you enjoyed reading this piece as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Best Regards,
Tal Sahar.