Al Jazeera: A Symphony of Life
I followed an old lady being pulled by a quick- moving young girl slaloming through the bustle of the floating hospital. With a bandage on one eye and a smile stuck to her face her yellow scarf blew out behind her, swirling like a dragon. I ran after her as she disembarked, stepping off the boat and into the sand. The young girl yanked at her to move faster but the old lady was unhurried as she took in her new vision. She looked at the unbroken blue sky, the brown earth, her dress, savouring the vivid colours. Then she raised her gaze and looked straight into the lens of the camera. She inspected the object before reaching for my shoulder to spin me around. “Look,” she whispered, “shishu (child).” There, in the sediment-rich waters, I saw it: the blind dolphin of the Brahmaputra River, a rare and majestic animal. Gracefully, it dove back into the water to rise up again, its fin glowing in the light. Under the surface there was a symphony of clicks as if the blind animal was communicating with the old lady who had found a new vision. It was for me, and Al Jazeera, the beginning of a new conversation.
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