By Cheryl Pancake

Tuesday, March 25, 2003 is our second full day in the field. We are being teamed up with three new students today. They are all high school girls and I wonder if they will be uneasy about going door to door with us while taking these surveys.

On our way to this morning’s destination, we walk down one of the dry, dusty streets that we surveyed yesterday. When we arrive at the s-curve in the street, we see a very large blue tarpaulin stretched across the street, high in the air, between two houses. A large pole is standing upright in the center of the tarp so it can be higher in the center than on the two ends. Several men and women are sitting on each side of the street in front of one of the houses. A lady sitting on the left side of the street is crying and saying something I cannot understand. Another lady sitting on the right side is crying, too. I cannot understand what they are saying, but I have a notion that something is very wrong. Could it be the guy who was arrested yesterday while we were surveying along the sewer tube? Has something happened to him?

A somber atmosphere hangs in the air as we walk by. I feel as if all eyes are watching us, wanting to know why we have intruded in their lives. We pass through the quiet crowd, each of us looking at the other wondering what has happened. A short distance down the street, our interpreters tell us that someone in the home has died and that the people are sad and mourning. Yesterday we learned that when a person dies, their body is taken away to the readied for their burial. The body is later returned to the home so that family, friends and community can come by to visit and pay their respects to the remaining family members. The deceased person’s body is not embalmed here in the Dominican Republic. Because of this, the funeral and burial of the deceased will be the day after the passing away of the person.

Once our survey area has been completely covered, we return to the clinic where we will enjoy ice cold water while waiting for Dr. Dohn to come and take us back to our home away from home. On our way to the clinic, we must walk past the home where the person has died. This time no one is crying audibly. There looks to be about 30-35 people sitting on stools, in chairs, and just standing. It is very, very quiet and all eyes are watching us once again. A man is just getting off a clean and shiny motorcycle. He is dressed in dress pants and a dress shirt and is wearing a motorcycle helmet. This is the first person I have seen, while here in the Dominican Republic, who is actually wearing a helmet. I wonder why he has one on today? Did he come from far away? More questions…

After we completed our mission this morning, I ask Dr. Anita Dohn, MD a few questions about the house down the street and the procedures after a person has died. She explained that the family, friends and the community have all come to pay their respects. I ask if the body is still in the home, she replied, “Yes. It is probably laid out in the home for everyone to come and view, and to pay his or her final respects.” I do believe what these people are doing today is the same as when we visit a funeral home the evening prior to a funeral. However, our funerals are not the day after a death but a few days later.

Death comes to all of us, whether we are in a third world country or the richest county in the world. There is no escape. This seems to be a mournful theme, but Dr. Lucas taught us that we must respectfully observe the rituals and customs of death and burial rites of a culture. I had no idea that I would practice this part of my research training today. I watch, learn, and keep asking more questions on this day of passing.