An Image in Your Mind

This photo won the 1994 Pulitzer Prize. It was taken in the Sudan by photographer Kevin Carter. Carter was widely criticized for taking the picture rather than helping the little girl. Later that year at the age of 33, haunted by the images in his photographs and deeply depressed Carter took his own life.

I saw this photo a few years ago at an exhibit about Pulitzer Prize winning photos and it has always stayed in the back of my mind. I think about not only the anguish of this child but the turmoil the photographer was going through that caused him to take his own life.

Hubert Humphrey said, "The moral test of a government is how it treats those who are at the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the aged; and those who are in the shadow of life, the sick and the needy, and the handicapped." Our run route passes by a food pantry line and I am reminded of this quote daily. I have watched this line growing longer and its dynamics change to include not only single homeless men but also mothers with children in tow and the elderly. Though our country is not in a time of famine many people are struggling. I am thankful for all the gifts God has given my family and reminded that there are many who are less fortunate.

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