What We Choose To See
I have a wonderful son. He’s two years old. Recently he’s been having a few issues with poo. Specifically he doesn’t like to poo. The wife and I often sigh when we look over and see him kind of hoping from one leg to the other in a little dance whilst muttering ‘no poo – no pooooo’. The next hour is often frustrating.
It’s a small issue for child who is developing well. Things could be so much worse. For example, consider the image below.
My initial response upon seeing this photograph was that the little boy just lying there looks almost exactly like my son sometimes does when he’s sleeping. Unlike the little boy above however my son will wake up.
I make no apologies for not providing some type of trigger warning to those reading this. I’m indifferent if my stance upsets you. This photograph should provoke some kind of response and we shouldn’t hide from that. We should confront the uncomfortable feelings that an image like this provokes.
These kinds of tragedies happen all the time all over the world. A little under twenty five thousand children under the age of five will die today (1). It shouldn’t take one photograph to remind us of this. The Syrian refugee crisis, and indeed the civil war in Syria itself, is but a quiver of pain in the misery which throbs from the developing world.
Looking past the raw figures lost opportunities loom. A child who with the appropriate education had the potential to cure cancer could have died just now from an easily preventable disease. The person who once had the potential to cure cancer could be ploughing a field desperately trying to prevent the starvation of their family. They could be jacked to the eyeballs carrying an AK.
The kinds of tragedies I’ve written about here are common. They happen literally all the time. On balance we don’t care at all. Perhaps it is more accurate to say that we don’t care enough to do anything. It shouldn’t take an image like the one in this post to make us care. We shouldn’t need to be reminded. The more shocked you are at this photo. The further removed you are from what is an uncomfortable reality.
There are no easy answers. No one initiative which will improve the situation. I choose to contribute by promoting awareness and discussion. By posting this I hope that those more talented than I can turn their considerable intellects to the problems of the world.
No person can singlehandedly improve the world. People who suggest that they can are often megalomaniacs in waiting. Yet, as cliché as it sounds, we can all change the world or at least our part of it. Not with grandiose plans and schemes. We can make a difference with honest truths backed by simple kindness. I’m as guilty as anyone of not doing enough but I will do better. We simply must do better.
(1) http://www.who.int/pmnch/media/press_materials/fs/fs_mdg4_childmortality/en/