POSTCARD FROM THE PANDEMIC: “The virus reminds us that we are all connected and created equal.”

Ekansh Tambe, a sophomore at the St. Mark’s School of Texas, already has a stunning photo portfolio after using his Nikon D5500 to photograph images of conflicts on six international borders, including the U.S.-Mexico border, the border between North and South Korea and the borders of Israel and Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Gaza. Now he’s turned his camera on our lives during the time of the coronavirus.

“The COVID-19 crisis has shut down our nation. It has taken over 55,000 precious human lives in the United States and over 200,000 world wide. It is a disease that has no borders, yet it has created both a six-foot and a mental border between all of us, hitting every community hard and keeping us inside our own homes. On the world scale, I believe it has united the world as a single people fighting against this invisible crisis that both traverses and creates borders. The virus reminds us that we are all connected and created equal, which is something I value highly, especially considering my extensive work on world borders and perspectives. I’ve used the shelter-in-place guidelines to cherish family time, appreciate my luxuries and reflect. It has instilled in me a deep sense of appreciation and respect for medical professionals.

“My photography portfolio consists of a number of different themes regarding the virus’s impact, both on individual people and the community as a whole. It was eerie to see the usually busy downtown streets completely deserted and realize the severity of small businesses’ situations. Also in downtown, I was shocked to notice a playground wrapped in yellow ‘Do Not Enter’ tape. Then, most recently, I witnessed an anti-city shutdown protest in the McKinney Historic District; I followed the CDC social distancing guidelines while navigating my way through the throng of protesters and photographing their cause.”

Ekansh and his sister, Ashna, who is in the Hockaday Class of 2024, have started a project, “Perspectives,” which are interviews with people about how the coronavirus has affected their lives. “Speaking to these people has given me great respect for and confidence in the strength of the American people to unite and fight together against this new crisis,” he says.

Check out his stories in photos each week here.