I am obsessed by the photos and the stories! This guy named Brandon in 2010 decided he was going to take 10,000 photos of random people in New York to post on a blog. Here's a short video describing why he decided to do this and where it took him. He tells the story much better than I could, because it's his story.
What a laugh this guy Brandon has! Right? I would love to meet him, he seems like such an amazing person and I love what he's done and his facebook page.
I haven't seen all of his photos yet, but this one truly touched my soul and reminded me of my dad who passed away last year in July.
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| Photo Credit - Humans of New York - facebook |
"I came from Mexico."
"Why'd you come?"
"Everybody comes for the money."
"Were you scared?"
"Everybody's scared."
I think of the stories that my dad would share with us about his struggles in coming to the United States from Mexico. How scared he was and how he many times had to sleep on trains, like a Hobo and how cold it was and how many times immigration captured him and sent him back to Mexico and he had to struggle to come back to the United States. I remember him telling us of nights he spent sleeping on the desert floor and hearing the sound of the coyotes in the dark and how they frightened him.
And he did it all for love. Love of his mother and brothers and sisters still in Mexico. He wanted to make their lives better and send them money so they could survive.
Love for his future wife and children, so he could build a life in the United States where he knew that because of him they would have a better life than the one he had and struggled to leave behind in Mexico.
What Brandon is doing by putting these photos out there to move and touch us, to remind us of the humanity and innate goodness of people is just so inspirational. People like Brandon should be celebrated, he should have an Olympic Gold Medal for his excellence in his chosen sport!
This is amazing. I love the concept of this and all the stories. I like the photo of your dad too. :) Thanks for sharing this amazing site.
ReplyDeleteI loved the concept too! Wouldn't this be a great thing to do in Vegas? Definitely the Humans of Las Vegas would be just as interesting. So many great stories in your town!
DeleteI liked the photo of my dad too cause he's rocking a great mustache just like the guy in Brandon's photo :)
Thanks for commenting!
I love him too! So interesting and what a great idea.
ReplyDeleteSometimes the best things come from small ideas. I love reading the comments with each picture! So inspirational!
DeleteThis idea reminds me of several books written by a guy named Studs Terkel, The Good War and Working. He conducts interviews with common ordinary people and let's them tells their stories in a collection of narratives. The Good War was about WWII. It presented the war from the not always so heroic side. It was a very genuine work and it opened my eyes to the grittier side of life.
ReplyDeleteThe guy's video is very inspiring and it is an example of what the Internet can do for the good. Digital photography is one of the great leaps forward in my estimation. Being able to take and post thousands of pictures at no cost other than the basic equipment is a powerful thing. Imagine this guy trying to do the equivalent in 1980. It would have been a major publishing effort. Very cool.
Your father was one hell of man. He raised one hell of woman. Hope you are feeling better.
Studs Terkel? What a name! I googled him and there is a website for him with all kinds of info, very interesting info. Have you read the books? I'm normally not big on reading history but I like what I read on the website and listened to some of the interviews. Always great to get a comment from you Sextant because I learn new things. Thank you!
DeleteIt is amazing what good can come of the internet and hopefully it balances out with some of the useless drivel you can also find. I guess it takes all kinds right?
Thanks also for your compliment on my dad and me. I can only hope to be half the man that he was!
Still feel like crap, but I'm pretty sure it's just allergies, which is what comes from living in Kern County.
I read the Good War and it was excellent. Just a collection of narratives by ordinary folk. One guy told what it was like to go head off for a battle engagement, and they marched them right by this huge surgical area they were setting up in tents. Many of those guys would be back in those tents wounded and dying within a few hours. It was a collection of insights from the common ordinary person.
DeleteIt always makes me a little sad that there are so many great books out there yet to be read and so little time! I doubt seriously that The Good War would be found at my favorite Goodwill bookstore, but it's on my list and I'll try to find it. I did enjoy the website though.
DeleteWhat a beautiful idea that man has! Thanks for sharing it, Alicia. I enjoyed reading about your father, too. What a strong, determined and loving man he must have been.
ReplyDeleteThank you for visiting Pondside! I hope you have a chance to visit Brandon's website, it's very amazing and what I like most are the comments people post. You get one or two negative comments here and there but for the most part the comments are very positive and uplifting.
DeleteYes, my dad was one of a kind and I miss him very much.