ghosts

[elysesewell]

In the abandoned St Marks School, Shau Kei Wan, Hong Kong.

小心D means be careful
有 means have
鬼 means ghost
so 小心D 有鬼 means "Be careful. There are ghosts."

Comments

Re: ghosts

[anonymous]

Glad you enjoyed them. I took these in a very remote mountain range in Namibia, so remote that, I shit thee not, these guys were still using stone tools into the 1970s. They'd been glimpsed in the 20s and 30s, then briefly contacted by an expedition in 1964. I heard rumors that they were still around and went looking for them in 2002. Three weeks, twenty miles of brush-plowing, and one wrecked truck later, I found them. Went back for a few months last year, and I should be headed back come spring.

The story behind the picture (and sorry for going on so):

After I'd been there a few weeks, I remembered that I had a copy of an article that was written after the '64 expedition, and that it contained a few pictures. I dug it out and it was a big hit. Right after I took this picture, the old guy on the right, Kavekuila, recognized the faces of his mother and sister. He hadn't seen them in decades - they caught something and died together in the early 70s.

This event proved a watershed. Ever-patient, always-helpful Kavekuila was moved to tears, and word of the 'yellow book' spread fast. This gave me real status in the group and led to a remarkable moment. I'd been asked many times why I was there but I'd never found an answer that really resonated, even in me. Then one guy looked up from the book, comprehension in his face, and told me why I was there - because 'people forget - the old ways, the ancestors'. I was shocked to realize that this was exactly right, and not just about what I was doing there then, but why I do anthropology. People forget, and there is value in remembering.

Steve

P.S. The background is washed out because everyone was crowded under my canopy, out of the blazing sun (it was about 115). Harsh place, handsome folks.