May our hands tell our stories

“Las Historias de Nuestras Manos (The stories of our hands)” (center) featuring Marta Rivas is the first photo from a collection by Claire Horrell (right) that tells the stories of the people’s hands.

By Claire Horrell, Brethren Volunteer Service Unit 328

Marta’s hands caressed and took attention to each plant, not ignoring any small detail. I was infatuated at not only this routine task, but the form of her hands. The hands of Marta and many other elders in El Salvador told much different stories than those of my own grandparents. They were strong and almost squarish—weathered and with little sensation to heat.

After passing time in a coffee shop one afternoon, I met a woman in her 90’s. I was immediately drawn to her hands, and she asked if she could share her story with me. It was not important that I fully understood Spanish because, as she recounted her life, she wept. I held her hands and could feel the life lived in them. This moment inspired in me to document not only her hands, but also the hands of others who spent their lives working the land, battling loss, raising kids, and sheltering their families from war.

With my experience in photography and videography, I have started to create videos and collections of photos displaying the hands and stories of these people. This was not in the description that I read about for my project site, nor was it something listed as a need. However, I believe this to be absolutely necessary. I will never fully understand the lives of other people—especially those that have gone through war. But I can, at the least, show them how beautiful and strong they are through this creative outlet.

Here at Centro Arte para la Paz, the mission is to help aid in the restoration of peace and healing of the trauma that individuals have undergone. My videos and photos will be presented and archived at the center for future tourists, students, and citizens of the area to learn a bit more of the history of the people. My vision is for others to take away from these videos the experiences that I have had through encounters with people such as Marta and the lady in the coffee shop. Chasing creativity is, in itself, chasing after God’s will for ourselves. Through artistic methods we learn more about him, ourselves, and the people around us. May our hands forever tell our stories.

This article was originally featured in the winter issue of The Volunteer newsletter published by Brethren Volunteer Service. Learn more about this Core Ministry of the Church of the Brethren at www.brethren.org/bvs or support its ministry at www.brethren.org/givebvs.

(Read this issue of eBrethren.)