[nagdu] Dogs and Islam: The Devil and the Seeing-Eye Dog

[David Baker]

I agree with your public transportation sentiment, Marion.  While it is
obviously much less convenient, especially in our automobile oriented cities, I
have always considered it a privilege to connect with the people my friends and
colleagues never get to see and for the most part do not even know exist.

I have great political discussion on buses and trains and the conversations are
vastly different from the conversations I have with fellow travelers on
airplanes.

In ré 'cures', I once had a Muslim driver in Dearborn, Michigan who insisted on
driving me around for free and kept trying to get me to give him my address in
Atlanta so he could bring me ZamZam water from the well at the al-Masjid al
Haram mosque in Mecca to treat my eyes.  He wanted to stay in a motel and come
to my home every day to wash my eyes with the water.  He was so insistent that
he slept in his limo near the hotel in case I came out and needed a ride.  He
believed that our meeting was pre-ordained and that curing my blindness would
give him special privileges in paradise.  He contacted his brother in Saudi
Arabia who agreed to ship the water to him.  I wonder how he might have reacted
to me had I been traveling with a guide dog.

David

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
Marion Gwizdala
Sent: Tuesday, March 30, 2010 7:23 AM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Dogs and Islam: The Devil and the Seeing-Eye Dog

    One of the "joys" of being blind is the privilege of riding public
transportation, along with other privileged citizens. Last week, Merry (my
wife) encountered a schizophrenic guy who advised her that, the next time she
sneezed and got snot on her hand, to rub it into her eyes and that would cure
her blindness! His argument was that snot had antibiotics in it and this was
supported by the biblical story of Jesus curing the blind man by spitting in the
mud and rubbing it on the blind man's eyes! The schizophrenic said it wasn't
really spit; it was snot!

Peace!
Marion