A group of well travelled individuals sets out to explore Morocco, and everyone feels confident with their previous experience in developing countries. They share glamorized images of romantic Casablanca, bartering in ancient marketplaces filled with great fabrics and textiles, colors, spices and smells...
Clinging to Hollywood-like fantasies of a country can sometimes present visitors with interesting surprises.
Shannon Ryan submits these photos and tells us that she can remember exactly what she was thinking and feeling at the moment each photo was taken during her recent trip to Morocco. Contrary to the romanticized images she held prior to landing, Shannon tells us she arrived right in the middle of Ramadan when shops are closed early and nightlife activities are hard to come by. There was an overwhelming heat and sense of developing nation in the air. It is these conditions which serve to fade out the fantasies and highlight the poverty and political issues with which the country continues to struggle.
Taking a step back, however, Shannon and her crew start to see past the surface and are reminded of one of life's most valuable lessons.
"Trekking through the sand dunes, I felt really small. They are so massive. They are amazing structures-- they continually clear their canvas and footsteps are wiped away with the wind and pull of gravity. I walk up the sand dune and come back down again only to look and see it’s like I was never there."
It might just be this same principle which guides the lives of the Moroccans.
"Children still seem happy if not happier than Western kids when they are playing even though they have so little. Morocco is not wealthy, they don’t have much, but they are happy with what they have..."
Perhaps we should all learn to traverse the dunes we encounter in our lives knowing that our travels through them are temporary. Just like the vanishing footprints of those who cross Morocco's massive dunes, our troubles and challenges don't last forever and there's always happiness to be found on the other side.
No comments:
Post a Comment