Where Time and People Begin

My Photo scholarship 2010 entry

Worldwide | Wednesday, October 13, 2010 | 4 photos

You are Never Alone in Yemen.

Yemen is an obscure country that before the recent Al Qaeda developments, its only noted mention was during an episode of the popular TV series ‘Friends’ when a character ends a relationship by saying he has been sent 'to Yemen'. However, my experience of Yemen was neither related to terrorism nor an excuse to terminate a relationship. In fact what I learned in Yemen was the very importance of relationships. At all hours men and children can be found out on the street massed together playing cards, drinking tea or chewing Qat. Similarly, within the ancient buildings lining the streets are groups of women in sitting rooms, yet without a place to sit.
After leaving my master’s program in a search for a different sort of education I found myself in Yemen. I didn't know at the time what sort of education I was looking for, but I found incredible teachers in this unknown country. In Yemen one cannot escape the fact that you are part of a community. Here, you quickly learn that one of the joys of being human is being together. The Yemeni's embrace this concept. They share it with others by their welcoming smiles and the simple pleasure they take from just being with one another.
Thus, like walking the streets of Yemen photography allows me to share my experiences of being with others. When someone looks at my photos they are in the moment with me. Furthermore, the onlooker is not only with the photographer, but also with the photographed. These simple two-dimensional images create global communities and celebrate the company of each other across time, distance, and culture. This is why I want to be a photographer. To share the lessons I learned on the streets of Yemen; experiencing others mere presence is what it means to be human.