Two Situations that Opened My Heart to Look Beyond the Obvious
April 10, 2017
During these last two weeks, I had the privilege of experiencing two arts events that in an unusual way bisected through human strength, perseverance, tragedy, and compassion. Through these two experiences I learned that within and beyond any story are human beings that sometimes are forgotten --and in some cases, never even considered--after the thrill of "the breaking news."
The first event was attending National Geographic Live and hearing from photojournalist Ami Vitale. To quote her write-up, "Nikon Ambassador and National Geographic magazine photographer Ami Vitale has lived in mud huts and war zones, contracted malaria, and donned a panda suit—all in keeping with her philosophy of 'living the story.'" Her "living the story" is exactly what made an impression on me. Over a six year period, this professional had put herself into violent war zones seeking "the shot." As the story goes, one day as she ran to a building which was engulfed in violence, her extra camera battery fell out of her pouch which prevented her from reaching the building, which then blew up. This brush with death, plus encounters with the people not directly involved with the conflicts but directly impacted by the battles made her rethink her photographic and life goals. Because of what I watched that night, my eyes and heart were opened to considering this aspect of stories I see, hear, or read on/in the news and what occurred or is still occurring to the humans living within the breaking news.
During these last two weeks, I had the privilege of experiencing two arts events that in an unusual way bisected through human strength, perseverance, tragedy, and compassion. Through these two experiences I learned that within and beyond any story are human beings that sometimes are forgotten --and in some cases, never even considered--after the thrill of "the breaking news."
The first event was attending National Geographic Live and hearing from photojournalist Ami Vitale. To quote her write-up, "Nikon Ambassador and National Geographic magazine photographer Ami Vitale has lived in mud huts and war zones, contracted malaria, and donned a panda suit—all in keeping with her philosophy of 'living the story.'" Her "living the story" is exactly what made an impression on me. Over a six year period, this professional had put herself into violent war zones seeking "the shot." As the story goes, one day as she ran to a building which was engulfed in violence, her extra camera battery fell out of her pouch which prevented her from reaching the building, which then blew up. This brush with death, plus encounters with the people not directly involved with the conflicts but directly impacted by the battles made her rethink her photographic and life goals. Because of what I watched that night, my eyes and heart were opened to considering this aspect of stories I see, hear, or read on/in the news and what occurred or is still occurring to the humans living within the breaking news.
Then not two weeks later, I attended the play By the Water, which focused on the story of the people left behind in the communities severely impacted by Hurricane Sandy 2012, the second costliest U.S. hurricane. This particular story was about money or lack of due to mistakes, failed hopes, unfulfilled expectations, loss of property and dignity. that all came to light when this disaster struck. The news did focus on the weather details, showed the damage to homes and businesses, interviewed a few families, but the pain occurring among the residents and business owners couldn't really be illustrated and doesn't hold TV viewers' attention long enough.
So the intersection of these outings is the human factor. After the lights, camera, action are completed, the real stories are continuing. Our worlds continue, and the story is no longer headlines, but the people, the people are still living with the loss, the pain, the suffering. No I don't expect all these issues or stories to be on the news nightly until everything is resolved or settled, but what I learned from both these works is that I must always watch or read the news and ask myself how are the people--not just those involved in the newsworthy story, but those people in surrounding areas or behind the scenes who may be impacted--like the negative ripple effect. How are they? How will they be when the newsworthy story is no longer in the news? How can the rest of us help?
Food for thought in this, thankfully, ever-thinking brain of mine...
So the intersection of these outings is the human factor. After the lights, camera, action are completed, the real stories are continuing. Our worlds continue, and the story is no longer headlines, but the people, the people are still living with the loss, the pain, the suffering. No I don't expect all these issues or stories to be on the news nightly until everything is resolved or settled, but what I learned from both these works is that I must always watch or read the news and ask myself how are the people--not just those involved in the newsworthy story, but those people in surrounding areas or behind the scenes who may be impacted--like the negative ripple effect. How are they? How will they be when the newsworthy story is no longer in the news? How can the rest of us help?
Food for thought in this, thankfully, ever-thinking brain of mine...
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