Denyse put her hand over mine. We were at the crowded deli, waiting for our smoked-meat sandwiches. “Sheila,” she said, looking worried. “Are you feeling ok?” “Nothing, just a headache,” but this headache roared. I drew my hand away, rolled my eyes around and felt a shaking in my ears. Denyse, a mother of five, stood up. She rushed around the counter and grabbed a phone. “Send an ambulance,” she said. “My friend is having seizures.” At the sound of the siren, I shut my eyes as the room spun around me. She took my arm and guided me toward the door.
Sheila McLeod Arnopoulos is a novelist, non-fiction writer, journalist, and author of Saris on Scooters: How Microcredit is Changing Village India, shortlisted for the Canadian National Business Book Award. Find Sheila at microcreditwomenindia.com.