Fishermen on the Coast

Going through my photos from Bagamoyo, I came across this picture and it caused me to think a lot. From where I was standing, I could see modern hotels and boats, yet there were these vessels. They looked like something out of parables I’ve read. There was one sitting on the shore that wasn’t being used anymore. I could see the pieces that were worked together to make the boat float. Tar in the cracks and over patches in the body, keeps the water out and the boat afloat. I saw the workers repair their nets and putting them in the boats on the way out to gather the morning’s catch.

Seeing these boats and their owners gave me, what felt like, a glimpse into the past. In reality, this is the way these men and so many others in this community make their living everyday. It is the means of feeding their family and sending their children to school. This is a snapshot of reality. It isn’t some far off time. It is just a few days ago and happened again today whether someone was there to capture it on film or not. This way of life is so far removed from my own existence. It is not something I understand at all. This ritual must be carried on day after day to bring in a harvest to feed hungry bellies. There is no rest. It is an existence that for the most part is day to day. I don’t even know how to begin to connect with that. I work a job as a student that puts funds in my bank account that allows me to mostly pick when I work and how much that is. I can travel across the world and be an observer into another way of life.