Us humans are capable of creating things of immense beauty as well of being capable of depraved cruelty to each other and create inventions which can immeasurably improve all our lives as well as invent horrific weapons to wipe out millions of souls in the blink of an eye.
Photographs possess a silent power that offers a poignant portal into moments forever suspended that do not merely document the past but provoke profound contemplation by confronting us with the fragility of human existence, the weight of historical choices, and the capturing both immense tragedy and quiet hope.
I have picked out 16 photographs which still make me ponder now on the cruelty, beauty and horror of us and our Planet.
I have often wondered what would happen if two armies facing each other said no, we are not going to fight each other and just laid down their guns and got together for a game of football instead.
This picture from 1914 shows exactly when that did happen and the German and British armies got together in No Mans Land on Christmas Day, sang some carols, shared beer and cigarettes and had a game of football.
Reports and photographs of these unofficial ceasefires reached the papers back home and the military authorities declared that informal truces with the enemy were to cease and any officer or non-commissioned officer found to have initiated one would be tried by Court Martial with harsh punishment for any man caught refusing to fight.
The small truces of 1914 never happened again but amidst the bloody and horrific slaughter, a rare glimpse of human kindness.
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