When one lives abroad, he becomes acutely aware of times that he is an outsider. For some people, this is the aspect of expat life that can be the most terrifying. How do I make friends? I can’t speak the language!
I won’t lie and say it’s easy. There have been plenty of times, especially at first, when day-to-day life can feel like a struggle and nothing but a big bag of Reese's Pieces, which one can only buy at a store thousands of miles away, will bring comfort.
Despite the occasional setbacks, the final rewards are amazing, a feeling of accomplishment and a greater sense of being a part of something much bigger that what was left behind.
I like having the perspective of an outsider, seeing life differently, enjoying the differences and appreciating the similarities. Each time I walk through the streets of a new city, especially the Eastern European ones we’ve visited, I’m reminded that being an outsider isn’t just a geographical designation. It’s also one of time.
Last week as I was walking through Belgrade taking photos of people going about their day, I realized each of us are outsiders, temporarily borrowing a spot of time in a place that has been here long before us and will, I hope, be around long after we’re gone.
I first felt that sense when I visited New York City and looked out of my hotel window in central Manhattan. From my 16th-floor viewpoint looking down the canyonlike street, I imagined the view was pretty much the same in the 1920s and the 1950s.
Perhaps this is a perspective that has been tempered with age. When I was first running around with a camera in my 20s, I didn’t think about the cycle of life. As one starts to receive AARP solicitations in the mail, however, the understanding that this whole gig is temporary gradually replaces the sense of permanence one has in his 20s.
That’s why I enjoy photographing life now more than ever. In every city we’ve been in, I love watching children playing, knowing they will soon inherit these spaces then pass along their inheritance to the next generation. I love watching the young spill out of trendy restaurants, bars, and nightclubs, living for the moment. And I love watching elderly couples walking hand in hand after a lifelong journey together.
When it comes down to it, each and every one of us is pretty dang fortunate to receive this inheritance and, like any gift, it’s best to not leave it unopened.
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