Memories: Earthquake, 2005

I cannot simply forget the face of the man holding his son's photograph. He was an old man, wearing dark-toned coat and had a very sad face. He told me that his son, who used to earn his living by teaching at a local institution in Muzaffarabad, Azad Kashmir, died during the earthquake which struck Kashmir on 8th October, 2005. It was the deadliest which had hit Pakistan and one of the deadliest ever recorded. Hundreds of thousands of people perished or were injured. Too many young men and women and children perished leaving their parents and grandparents alone and in some cases, perpetually destitute.

 

This is the single most powerful shot from my series on Kashmir which I did one month after earthquake in November, 2005. It was chilly there on the barren mountains of Kashmir and during silent nights one could hear distant sounds of 'Ya Allah, Ya Allah'. Whenever I remember this old man, whenever I recall those heart wrenching cries, my heart too cries.

 

We must thank Allah for all His mercies and Bounties. And we must be grateful to Him for protecting and feeding us.

Done