The Importance of Giving Back: 2/2

A multimedia story about leaving and returning, about passing on, and giving back.

Part 2/2 – Sophie

Location: Den Haag

"Sat behind the steering wheel,

my mind wanders off to a familiar place.

I catch myself through the fog of the industrial area,

noticing the long forgotten border station,

waving at tiny cows in wide fields.

Reflecting on what has been given to me,

and what should be returned,

all the differences

between my hometown and newfound home.

Yet my journey merges the two,

blurring the lines of here or there.

Every time, the drive is shorter than

this feeling should deserve.

The water looks the same,

feels the same,

even tastes the same.

Rhein becomes Rijn.

Routine finds me between the two.

I roll down all the windows,

start singing along as loud as I can.

Here is my freedom"

(A story about leaving and returning, about passing on, and giving back. Sophie Leyen-decker is a documentary photographer from Germany, based in the Netherlands.)