Just relax and focus on your breathing. Just relax and it will be fine. I knew I was lying to myself but half heartedly believed these thoughts out of sheer hope. The ability of he mind to lie to itself is an incredible gift, and I have employed it several times. My stomach churned again. That was it. After witnessing Kevin suffer for over 4 hours the night before, then the local doctor telling us it was from a waterborne illness, I knew I was done for...it was only a matter of time.
I could feel everything moving in the opposite direction: left to right, down then up. The body shakes were strong enough that I thought I would be possible to shake my faulty shoulder out of socket. It was just below my rib cage. More shaking and it was now just below my heart. I heard Kevin stir and told him, "I am about to join you."
The sprint to the bathroom on trembling legs would have put FloJo to shame. What followed doesn't need to be described in detail. Illness from water is similar to that of food poisoning. Varying from person to person. Afterwards, i didn't know what to do: hang in the bathroom or go lay down. Too exhausted to sit upright, I chose to lay down. Kevin's episode was far longer than mine. So who knows what would occur next. I laughed at myself. Each day here, being healthy, I'd scoff at the idea of becoming sick. Who the hell did I think I was? Too good for an illness that 90% of travelers suffer from to some degree?
The remainder of the day was spent napping, eating plain chapatti, and sipping juice or water. The events of last night after a day like we had was enough to knock us off our feet. Oh yeah, Happy New Year, everyone! Nepali new year starts today, April 15. On their calendar it is something like 1965. It does feel like we have stepped back in time, sometimes further back than that. I must say though, thank the Sweet Lord Shiva (or Ganesh, I am still subpar on my Gods here) for modern medicine!
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