Emergence - Book - Page 55
This was the end of my 昀椀rst time in this other South Africa. The weeks had passed so quickly, and yet their impact on me was lifechanging. As I drove southeast back to Johannesburg, I continued to encounter people whose lives had had such a profound impact
on me. I was angry and guilty, and yet liberated from the constraints of my previous naivety. From the goat dairy providing milk for the
children to the farmers in hard hats still using a donkey plough to the children happy to walk miles with the prize of a sack of maize,
they all left me hopeful for a better future. But still, the ever-present reminder from mothers asking for help I could not give, peppered
my drive back.
Keen to make a difference with my photos, I held my 昀椀rst exhibition in Oxford, hoping to raise funds for Operation Hunger. After
lukewarm responses to my request for publicity, like a lifeline, Desmond Tutu agreed to attend the opening, providing the oxygen of
celebrity. Despite widespread press coverage and a well-attended opening, the donations fell short of my expectations. Many had
commented that the people in the photos looked 昀椀ne — perhaps my positive portrayal had back昀椀red.
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