CAPTIVE HUNGER

December 2020 | Lion and Rhino Nature Reserve, Gauteng, South Africa

He stood still, watching. Not roaming free, but waiting. Caged, not by his will, but by the hands that now decide when and how he eats. I photographed this captive lion just before feeding time and couldn’t shake the weight of the moment. His stance, his stare, something about it echoed far beyond the fence. We’re all captive to something. Politics. War. Borders. Fear. Sometimes, it’s just life’s brutal unpredictability. But even here, he held dignity. And sometimes, that’s the only thing we have left to hold.