Example 1

Hope

The people in this picture live in day to day hope. They pray that that their life is not washed away in this flood. I can only wonder where the rest of their family is. Have they drowned? If the family is gone then this man must support his very young child by himself. School may be free, but clothing is not and neither is food. These people are living on hope. Hope that a day's earnings will be enough for food. Hope that they will survive this disaster.

I can't imagine what that would be like. I have been spoiled any way you compare my life to this man. I haven't had to suffer. My life has never been put at risk. I have more food than I need each day.

One picture forced me to think of all this. How great my life is. I can't complain about it and no one I know should be able to either. I can't imagine what it would be like to live my life on a day to day basis of hope. These people are born into this kind of life and it is likely that if these two people survive the little child will also live in constant hope and so will her children

Example 2

Childhood Innocence

Natural disasters can bring out primitive behaviors in people. Fleeing, panicking and fear are all natural behaviors that people can exhibit. But what about the children who have never felt real panic or fear, what do they feel? What is this child, held up by an adult, feeling?

It is obvious that the man in this picture is scared. Is he afraid of water, or is the water cold? No matter what detail is true, the man has an expression of fear on his face. But the child he is carrying seems just to be staring, why? What is he feeling? Does he understand what is happening? Is he struck in awe, or is he secretly afraid? Does childhood prevent you from feeling true emotions?

When we are children, we don't always understand the dangers around us. A baby, not taught to be scared, could carelessly play with a venomous snake! Does this child know the dangers of a flood? Would you know, when you were a child, that a flood was dangerous? Maybe you would want to play in the water, like it was a big swimming pool. Would you have only figured out the danger when your parents got scared? I think that the child does not know what is happening, and does not feel that danger.

But could the child's awe be explained differently? It is also possible that the child was looking at the camera. The child might have never seen a camera before, causing him to stare at it. The camera and the new watery surrounding may have overwhelmed the child, causing him to hold on in awe. But there is one other possibility for why the child is staring.

The child also may be staring at the cameraman. Maybe the child is confused about why the cameraman is standing in the flood waters taking pictures of them. But if that was true, then the child must know what is happening around him! The final conclusion about this picture is inconclusive. The child may or may not know what is happening, but the odds are good the he is not scared. The child is probably confused, wondering why his town is surrounded by water, and trying to figure out what is next.

Example 3

Do You Care?

When we read about the natural disasters that are occurring all around the world. Many times, we scan the article for the major points, look at the terrifying pictures and turn the page and begin the same process all over again! People are dying and no one even gives the article a second glance.

When a disaster occurs, many people could be less worried because the disaster didn't affect them. A lot of people are selfish when it comes to death in other parts of our nation. When something terrible happens to a certain part of the world, one thought comes into our heads, "Thank God that wasn't me," and move on in our daily schedules. I admit I can be one of those selfish people. I swear it's an instinct! It just pops into your head uncontrollably and there's nothing you can do to stop it. When you and your environment are not affected you often don't think more then just, "Oh, that's horrible!"

Often, there are charities, fundraisers, and dinners to help raise money for the city that got struck by the disaster. Sure, the money eventually goes to the charity but we still can't help but think about how lucky we were not to get hit by such a disaster. Well, raising money helps but money is not the only thing needed. These people need physical help as well.

People are suffering and we don't do anything but glace at it and then turn it away like it doesn't matter! People will never know what happens to the homes and hearts of the victims of terrible disasters until they go through one themselves.

I hope not all people are like this. I hope there are people who donate their hard earned money to people who are in need. This money does not only have to be for the disaster areas but for all people in need. I hope people learn to look past just a picture and a typed article in the newspaper and learn to help others.

Example 4

Just Above Water

The picture of the day shows a man with his daughter trying to hold on to dear life. The father is crying and the baby has a look of sadness on her face. They are both hoping they will get out of this mess alive and well. When I first saw this picture, I wondered how a person could get in this kind of mess. Then I read the little paragraph and wondered how come things like this never happen in America? It seems like whenever I read the newspaper there is a little town in Indonesia or something that is flooded with everyone evacuated. I also wondered why places like Indonesia don't modernize like America or Hong Kong. When I look at it, I can see that America is a much better place to live compared to Indonesia. There is a lot less poverty and most people aren't making enough for ends meet.

When I see pictures like this, I realize how fortunate I am to live in a nice house and have a full stomach every night. I'm sure most people all around the world are happy with their lives and how they live because they have people around them that they love and also love them. Over the summer I had the chance to go to China. On the trip, my dad took my brother and I to where he had grown up and had shown us how hard his childhood had been. His house was about the size of one room in the house that we live in today. That trip had made me understand why my dad was always so grateful when he could save every little penny here and there. Knowing what my dad had gone through makes me very grateful of what he has given me throughout my whole life.

Example 5

Just Above Water

We, the human race, thrive just above water. We scramble day in and day out as the ocean splashes up at the outskirts of our haven. But our wet ally does not do as we command, but what Mother Nature asks of it. Borders are crossed, at these times, and the sea challenges the strength of our kind as monsoon, tsunamis, tornadoes, and storms devastate us all over the globe.

There are many examples of Mother Nature's wrath all around the world, especially this time of year, as the water grows angry and restless. The Life "Picture of the Day" is that of a man and a young girl navigating a flooded street in their neighborhood in east Jakarta. Indonesia. A torrential monsoon has left them homeless as they are forced to tread through what was once a dry, busy street. As the little girl clings to the neck of the man, knuckles white, she flashes a look of cluelessness that pleads with the world to look at what nature has beset upon her and her people. The man holds onto her as if she is all he has left in the world, his whole town, his whole world, his whole life, devastated. The unforgiving, unforgivable water reaches the grown man's chest as he holds the girl just above death. The pain and desolation that the water has caused has left this refuge in submerged chaos. These people are examples of what it is like to survive just above the water, where life lay in the hands of the unmerciful sea.

Not all of us experience the pain and suffering that these people undergo seasonally. We are the lucky ones. We are the ones that have found a harbor where the water just sits at our feet. And because of that; we should be the ones lending a hand to our brothers and sisters on the other side of the globe, giving them hope and incentive to give life above water another chance. We should be the ones trudging through the flooded streets, holding a lost child close, telling them, not to worry it will all be over soon. We should be there, with our people, experiencing what it is truly like, living just above water.