Bowel Movements Without Borders: What is Privacy Doing to Community?

Sunrise over Mastatal in Costa Rica.
Sunrise over Mastatal in Costa Rica.
Shadows might lurk in the valley of Mastatal, but no secrets are found here.

During my stay in Costa Rica, I spent two nights with a local host in the small rural community of Mastatal. The home, like many others in the community, was constructed in familiar fashion: floor, external walls, internal walls and roof were all accounted for. Notably, however, there was no ceiling; that is, there was substantial space between the top of the internal walls and the roof above.

This seemed of little consequence until I found myself familiarized with the bowel movements of our host: Lus Milda.

Photo depicting bedroom with gap between interior wall and roof.
See that gap between wall and roof – that’s the culprit right there!
And her daughter. And her son-in-law. Not to mention the construction worker, the elementary school teacher, the high school teacher and the assistant principal of the regional school board, and of course, the two other program participants who were all sharing in Lus Milda’s hospitality. Having the bed positioned immediately adjacent to the bathroom I would hear everything (and more!) that is to be expected from a diet of rice and beans. Subsequently, when it came time for me to make a deposit, I was very aware of the fact that I had an unwilling audience. Privacy, then, was compromised.

Continue reading “Bowel Movements Without Borders: What is Privacy Doing to Community?”