Darfur...doctor's pictures

My family doctor works at a small, warm clinic in Longueuil (Clinique Ste-Catherine). The owner, a doctor named Yolande Leduc, went on a mission to give some of her services.  Her travels brought her to Darfur.The walls of the clinic are a testimony to what she has witnessed. Beautifully framed photographs of War Soldiers not older than fifteen years of age, little underprivileged children,  families still bonded despite an obvious scarcity of ressources: this is what we can see. The photographs are absolutely beautiful. The emotions conveyed in the faces of the subjects can't be missed, or ignored at that. Some of the photographs are joined with explanatory notes that can't do anything but break your heart. Can you imagine having been trained in war, to kill when you were merely 12... or imagine your own children???!!! Even after being saved from this life, what kind of scars do these individuals suffer from? Is there any refuge for them?

There is this one photograph, ''The Girl in Red''... It is stunning. It depicts a little girl in the middle of a dirt road. The entire scenery is drab, dirty, poor. This little girl however, despite her situation, is wearing bright red. It seems to represent that there is still a glimmer of hope of a brighter future for this girl, and others like her.

Seeing these photographs brings me back to a time where I thought that I wanted to work in the field of International Human Rights... The road of life might have led me in a different direction, my career aspirations have perhaps changed, but I still hold the cause close to heart.

Doctor Leduc is accomplishment is trifold: 1) She has herself contributed to the cause by giving her time and expertise. 2) She has artistically represented the cause and is raising awareness by displaying her photographs. 3) She is not only displaying the photographs in her clinic, she is selling them. There's no set price... theres's a note that indicates: '' See a photograph you like, see Dr. Leduc and negotiate with her''. The money, of course, goes directly to the cause of Saving children soldiers in Darfur. I wonder what these should go for... I'm thinking that '' The Girl in Red'' would look great in my house, somewhere...