Don't let the mosquitos bite

Oh how my world has changed since I learned the tricks of the mosquito net. My taxi driver, Mark, let me know the simple trick one day last week when I complained of two nights in a row with disturbed sleep. He inquired about my net practices. And it was then, that I learned how I had failed. The secret I learned is, to be sure to put the mosquito net down in the early evening, before the sun begins to set and the mosquitos come out to play. I had no idea! Of course after hearing these words of advice, it all made perfect sense. The next night, literally my sleep world changed. No rude awakenings: no sharing the bed with a stranger, no more buzzing in my ear, or waking up to find myself scratching my shoulder bright red. The next night, carelessly, I forgot to let the net down before bedtime. And from that moment forward, I made the decision to never put the net up again. Why should I? There is no reason for it not to rest comfortably covering my bed's frame, and offering constant protection from mosquitos. It is my lovely shield, and I have come to terms with it. We are now friends. I no longer struggle with feeling closed in or suffocated, and I am even beginning to see it as my little womb for respite. (Excuse the term, but I am specializing in women's health.) I no longer feel like it is more hot beneath the white web, although it is more warm beneath, than outside.
Now that I am using the net correctly, I am able to appreciate its beauty and purpose. It also hit me this week, that everyone here uses a mosquito net, if they are fortunate enough to have one. I had previously been thinking it was just something foreigners were recommended to do. Thinking perhaps we were more susceptible to bug bites due to our foreign born blood. But, I realized very quickly from speaking with Guyanese, that the net is necessity. And it keeps me safe.