"Together We Will Rebuild"

"Together we will rebuild China" read the admission sticker for the photo exhibit Ingrid and I viewed today. The show was sponsored by a local Chinese newspaper that has dedicated heavy coverage to the earthquake and its horrible aftermath in Sichuan province. I have to say...it was marvelous. The topic and the mood is obviously completely heartwrenching, but the image captures and the level of photojournalism was mind blowing. The images spoke for themselves, which in my case was a good thing because the whole expo was captioned and presented in Chinese characters so I couldn't read a thing anyway. Neither could Ingrid.

An English speaking docent who is from Sichuan shared with me that many of the people in these areas never even knew what an earthquake was prior to the tragedy. Now they are trying to relearn life without, in many cases, a loved one. I was literally breathless as I carried Ingrid by the images of the parents weeping and wailing as they came to realize their dear child was missing, their sadness made heavier by China's 'One Child' policy that left many with their only offspring lost in the rubble. So intensely sad. A Chinese soldier was scheduled to give a presentation on his rescue experiences as I was leaving and I was so sorry not to speak/understand Mandarin to catch his speech.

One picture totally took me off my emotional guard. It was an photo of thirty or so adults lined up in three rows one in front of the other each holding an 8 x 10 framed photo of their child, all of who had perished in the quake. There they stood holding a picture of their lost child, there I stood holding my little daughter Ingrid. Such a sad fate to lose your child...there isn't much a parent wouldn't do to protect their baby but these poor strangers never had that chance. So sad.