A Doe’s Eyes

I met her in the Himalayan Hills above Begnas Tal. Her husband ran the shop attached to her home, selling batteries, soft drinks, bottled water, film and other things the trekkers were always wanting. We had just taken pictures of him and their son, sitting proudly in front of the shelf-lined wall of the shop. While we rested for a few minutes, drinking Fanta Orange that we’d just bought, we wandered next door. To her home where she worked at her clay oven

Initially she shrank back into the shadows as my travelling companions (men which I think made her uncomfortable in the safety of her home), aimed their cameras at her. When they shrugged and walked away, we made eye contact, she and I. I tried to apologise with my eyes and face; she came out of the shadows slightly. When I raised my camera and asked permission with my eyes, she moved forward into the light. It is always her eyes that capture me in this shot – warily trusting, glowing. It was a rare privilege and I know it well. This woman, in her home, where she should have had privacy.

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