The next day we went to a small village nearby. The dirt road that led us there was little better than a footpath, but somehow the jeep made it. We ended up in a family compound surrounded by green rice fields. Truly beautiful!
Since we were only going for the day, we packed up just enough supplies to last. Thanks to many visits to the container store, and collapsible camping plates from Paragon, we had mobile kits for each practioner to carry from patient to patient. There was just enough space for needles, cotton balls, alcohol swabs and a small garbage. 
We took out our travel packs of sundry bags and created our treatment space in the courtyard of our host’s home. Villagers soon lined up for treatment.
Because of the lack of a road, this village had really no easy way to get medical help. One of our first patients was a young man who came assisted by family members and on crutches. He had been in a motor scooter accident and broken his neck. We later learned that Frank had treated him 1 1/2 years earlier. At that time he was mostly paralyzed and his family assumed he would die. Frank was overjoyed to hear how much improvement he had. We also saw a noticeable improvement from our intervention. With just two acupuncture treatments his life was completely changed.
On a lighter note, we also learned later that the raised platform area we had used as one of our treatment “beds” was actually the household altar, and final resting place for members of this extended family when they pass on! Another cultural lesson for us, but in the end the villagers didn’t seem to mind.
At the end of the day we packed up, loaded back into the van and rode off, content with our day’s work.
