The Antidote Part One

Shotgun Wedding

Shotgun Wedding The story and thoughts behind one photo

A pile of empty shells by a deserted window, a snipers window.  We are on the border between Croatia and Bosnia and the window is in a school, it looks out across no man’s land.  It is eerie; contradictory... schools should represent hope, the next generation, freedom, possibility, life.  But not here, this school has been blown to pieces.  It is exposed to the elements with the pages of schoolbooks flapping as the wind howls through deserted corridors.  One book shows the face of Ghandi.  It is strange to find the photo of a pregnant bride by a pile of empty shells.  The cigarette butts evoke a story.  Long hours waiting, wondering, and then I wonder why on earth would someone own and then discard such a photo.  This picture is full of contradictions.   

But then war is full of contradictions.  War on the ground is so personal – often more personal than political.  If it were my bride, unborn child, sister, brother, mother, father, it would be personal.  And those living in conflict grasp the delicate balance between life and death.  Tomorrow may never come and if you want something you take it today. 

We often see war in the abstract, detached from personal stories.  But the political stories are personal, they always impact real people like you and me.         

Back in 1995, when Bosnian ethnic cleansing was at its height, the US intervened.  A fragile peace followed and still holds.  Thank God for the intervention and for those that stand on the line.  But then let’s not forget that war is a hideous thing.  I may not be the pacifist I would like to be, but surely we should fight for peace with all our strength before we march to war.    

© Photo copyright Jim Loring.  No reproduction without permission.

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© All other photos copyright Jim Loring.  No reproduction without permission.