21st Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest People
(Part 4 of Dementia) Photo Name: MAMA!

This photo is meant to represent my neighbor as a young boy, mourning over his dead brother. I have been through a lot in my life, but the hardest experience was the fluctuation in my relationship with my parents. The way this boy mourns, is how I mourned quietly to myself, over that relationship being strained. When I was younger I would cling to my father, the same way my brother clings to my mother. Calling her MAMA!. But there is something so sad about growing older, that rips such innocence away from you. And now I run from my father, screaming PAPA!. My neighbor shares horrific experiences as well, when the old man (my neighbor) looks towards his shadow, its almost like he can see himself as boy crying to his mother. When his brother died he felt gloomy, how could his brother so innocent be taken and how did he deserve that. This photo is my own shadow, and I took in front of the wall in my own room.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 08.2023
Date Uploaded: 11.2023
Photo Location: Bronx, New York, United States of America
Copyright: © Sakaturi Sanuri