Saint Sergio and his Museum

Sergio Castro helped organize the service project from this morning, but this evening he invited us onto his turf. He’s called San Sergio for a reason: he dedicates all of his time to service projects like the one we did this morning. More important, though, is the free medical service he provides to burn victims throughout the rural areas. He is not a doctor, but he has developed a holistic cure that helps people recover from second- and third-degree burns without skin grafts or any of miracles of modern medicine. Many of the dwellings here have fireplaces in the home (it’s cold here due the high altitude), and it is not uncommon for children to fall in or get seriously burned. He never accepts payment from the people he helps. He only accepts donations to his organization. As you might imagine, most people want to give something to the man who saves their children’s lives. As a result, his home is a museum of gifts he’s collected from nearly every indigenous culture. He gave us a tour and a really interesting lecture about all of the cultures. I had this feeling of being one of the nesting Russian Matryoshka dolls. Every culture is a microcosm that exists independently and somehow within an area dominated by a more popular culture. It’s all a system within a system. I’ve really enjoyed the out-of-body experiences like this throughout the trip that have helped me step out of context and look at things from the outside-in.