A Window Wide Open

In Bagan, random experiences that would shake you to your core could happen on a daily basis. That was the inexplicable magic of that city. And every single time, it felt as if a new window had opened in your heart — a window you had no idea even existed.

Not infrequently, too, you would come across something so heart-wrenching that it would linger in your soul for weeks, even months.

A Window Wide Open portrays La Pyay Win, a young mother living at a garbage dump on the outskirts of Bagan, Myanmar.

Had she been luckier in life, she could have pursued a successful career elsewhere. She was beautiful, clever, and sharp-minded. But for the time being, her destiny was to be there, at a garbage dump, trying to survive with her husband and three children.

Have you ever thought about what part choice truly plays in our lives? Did we choose to be born into a rich and prosperous land rather than into a poor and war-torn country? Did we choose our genes, our cultural background, our education, our social status? Did we choose the way we look, our physical and mental health, our character and inclinations, our talents and skills?

IMF — January 2024