McCurry in No Hurry.

Steve McCurry is one of those brilliant photographers. A legendary photo-journalist who has travelled the globe in a quest to capture human struggle and joy. I urge you to absorb his gallery online (www.stevemccurry.com) and when you do, you will recognize the photographer behind one of the most recognized photos in the world today-the mesmerizing portrait of an unidentified Afghan refugee girl. There is an amazing story about how she was found many years later...
I mean this is a man who disguised in local garb, crossed over the border of Pakistan into rebel-controlled Afghanistan prior to Russian invasion, with the help of six mujahidin (Afghan freedom fighters). All to capture the suffering of the people there. Walking through mine-fields amidst the Russian invaders, McCurry risked his life. He finally escaped Afghanistan with camera film sewn into his clothes and was the first to show the world what was going on in Afghanistan in the 1980's.
Talk about motivation.
McCurry started his adventures in India.
His bio says: "It was in India that McCurry learned to watch and wait on life. "If you wait," he realized, "people would forget your camera and the soul would drift up into view."
Yes, India definitely is a good place to master the art of watching and waiting. So much to watch and so many things to wait on.
McCurry's web galleries are amazing by the way (www.stevemccurry.com) and feature a nice sample of his work from around the globe. Pictures from India are so real and deeply touching. In the India gallery you will also recognize the photo of the boy from Mumbai on the paperback version of Suketu Mehta's Maximum City. The boy is celebrating Ganesh Chaturti and covered with rang (red powder-often used in times of celebration) but his expression is serious and unexpected.
In an effort to literally absorb myself in his work, I recently bought a box of 50 postcards titled 'Portraits by Steve McCurry' (from Yoox.com-see link on the right) and have pasted them in a row on all 4 walls of my office.
For practically every emotion I feel during the course of my day, there is a face, a person, a story gazing back at me that inspires me, soothes me, haunts me, intrigues me, amuses me, saddens me, confuses me, delights me...and reminds me of the colorful and fascinating world beyond the one I live in. So much to learn by watching and waiting.