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"I had the opportunity to accompany my partner Barrie Dowdall to Afghanistan and Pakistan to work doing field sound for the fly-on-the-wall documentary project for 'NOW with Bill Moyers'. What a privileged opportunity that was.
As Barrie's assistant and field sound tech, I was kept pretty busy. However I did get time between or after official duties to use my own camera and take photographs, albeit not as freely as the humor usually takes me.
I really appreciate the opportunity to show some of my photographs, God knows I took hundreds, and to share some of my insights from a precious, and most difficult time for the Afghan people and their country so in need of fundamental support in the short and long-term.
I am very conscious that I spent only two weeks in Afghanistan and Pakistan, so my insights and impressions are merely those — the impressions of a wide-eyed, big-hearted Irish woman.
I have showed parts of my collection of photographs to many Irish people since returning, to friends in development and gender equality work, in urban and very rural areas. I have spoken of my experiences and insights in conversations with children, with older people at wakes and funerals, to friends over dinner, to photographers, actors, painters. I have been very reassured by their hunger to hear recent stories, insights and personal experiences. The humanity of man and woman and the sense and appreciation of our interdependence never ceases to amaze and delight me.
I hope that the availability of some of the photographs and some insights on the NOW web site will give others a chance to (re)think, to contemplate the situation of men, women and children in Afghanistan, a small country in this little world of ours. Afghanistan, the size of France or Texas, is the crossroads between the east and west of our little world.
 Find out more about Concern and its work from an interview with Dominic MacSorley.
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