Olympus OM-2, People, Poetry
by Patrick Jennings

Portrait of Happiness

Uyghur Girl, Kashgar, Xinjiang Autonomous Region, The People's Republic of China
In a city of
Greys and dust
And muted blues
A young smile
Comes to me

“Take my picture”
She says
Then stands there
Happy and poised
In vivid red

So I remind myself
Yet again
Happiness owes nothing
To wealth
Or possessions

Happiness is ours to have
In any given moment
Happiness is ours to share
With foreign strangers
And those we love, deeply

Uyghur Girl
Kashgar
Xinjiang Autonomous Region
The People’s Republic of China

Taken during travels, 1998

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