How to Escape from Faith Healers while Blind

Stay sharp, and know the exits

Listen to this story on the Deep Sy podcast.

“You will be healed within one year.”

I had just stepped off the subway and was walking in a stream of people toward the turnstiles to exit when a woman said this out of nowhere from about two feet away. Her voice was confident and clear.

People who, like me, are both disabled and prone to zoning out on public transportation get used to shaking ourselves out of our thoughts to respond to comments about our bodies. I imagine most people would find the comments startling. For us, they just come with the territory of being in public. Some of the comments repeat themselves over time and become, if not predictable, at least familiar. I was pretty sure I knew where this was going.

“God is going to heal you and you will be able to see in the next year.”

“Oh,, okay,” I said uncertainly with an awkward smile. It’s hard to tell how much people who say things like this are going to want to engage. A couple times, I listened to monologues so interminable that I had to raise my voice, state firmly I was leaving, and walk away while the person was mid-sentence.

It was best to keep things surface level with this woman, which was no small task considering she was telling me the creator of the universe had joined my team of medical care providers. She continued.

“My name is Deborah. Remember the name Deborah. A year from now, when you can see again, don’t forget Deborah told you God was going to cure your blindness.”

“Yes, alright, uh… Does he take Blue Cross Blue Shield?” I asked, really reaching for some light-heartedness.