An Intriguing Day With Strangers Part 1

Every week, Im always trying to stay on top of the event scene here, and resources like foreigner mags and newspapers in English are indispensable resources. This week, I was lucky enough to take notice of 2 really thought-provoking exhibitions that peered into the lives of complete strangers. Both dealt with the darker reality of life that most people probably dont see, and most people dont likely want to think about. However, since both involved art media to convey this information, I thought it might give me some ideas to pursue in the future with photograpy, video and so on.

My first visit took me to the SYD(Support Your Dreams) Hall in the city of Sendagaya. This organization travels to the Philippines in August annually to reach out to communities of locals that reside in garbage dump slums. Families, which span many generations, have been living in conditions such as these for many decades, as I was lead to understand. The photographs at this exhibition were taken over several years of work with this community, while building an international relationship between both groups involved. Today's event was an example of those years of labor and accomplishment. I was able to sit and talk with 2 members of the SYD foundation, Chieko and Haruka, who were involved with this specific project and graciously gave me more insight. The following is a summary of what was discussed.

The most shocking bit of information came when Chieko told me that these people were there by choice and not through any involuntary causes. As a financially struggling community, this garbage dump provided a means of income which these locals utilized daily by collecting clothes, plastic bottles, or whatever they could to sell for money. On average, they could bring home roughly $2 a day for their efforts, and this is how they basically survived from day to day. The government in the Philippines has stated they would close down these facilities in order to remove this situation, but the community has decided that it would just relocate to another dump, even if it meant routinely walking for 2 hours each day to the next site. After speaking with Chieko, I had a chance to meet with Haruka, a volunteer with SYD, who has traveled there multiple times and also spent one night with a family inside this garbage dump.

I was especially interested in hearing from someone who had gone a step further and experienced what it was like to live this life. So, I politely introduced myself and proceeded to ask her about the experience. Haruka mentioned that the family she stayed with was composed of 9 people: a mother and child, her six sisters, and one brother. They all lived in a space that was approximately 7'x12'. Unbelievable. A touching part of her experience came when the family offered Haruka the 1 mattress they had. As she explained this to me, she recalled feeling extremely guilty about taking the bed, but eventually accepted so as to not offend anyone. Even though these people had so little, they still remained kind to complete strangers. That is a very admirable quality, and in my opinion, is unfortunately decreasing with each successive generation in first world nations. Though Haruka may have felt guilty by the special treatment she received that night, the cheerful energy that radiated from the children in the slum gave her a reason to smile. Although this positivity was comforting, it also delivered a sense of confusion to her and many other volunteers.

The Japanese that traveled to this specific area of the Philippines didnt expect to see smiling people, so they were dumbfounded when the children of these garbage slums told them that they were actually happy. For the children, they had everything that was important to them in their lives: family, friends, and a passion for life. The volunteers reside in a country that is economically sound and can provide for its people, yet they themselves didnt feel so cheerful about their own lives. So, this became a very important underlying part of the exhibition for the SYD organization: the children's smiles. They hoped that everyone who visited the gallery this day would be able to see that through this hardship and rough exterior, there was a zest for life, a feeling of warmth, and it was expressed in the simplest of ways. Through a basic, but powerful gesture. A smile.

I am moved by the effort this organization makes in order to reach out to people who are seemingly forgotten about in society, and I think they are doing something that holds a lot of positive substance that will hopefully carry over to others. Unfortunately, it seems like a never-ending cycle for this poor community which lacks economic support, opportunity, and education; however, the kids seem to really look forward to each August when the volunteers make their way back to the community. Best wishes to all of you.