The Tenderness of Men

Photograph by Erika Larsen Chosen by Sarah Leen

The caption that photographer Erika Larsen sent with this photo from her National Geographic story about the Sami people of Northern Scandinavia read: “Sweden: February 2011, Sven Skaltjie found a pair of female reindeer whose antlers became locked together during a fight. They then starved to death. Sven sawed the bodies apart to identify whom they belonged to. One was his and one belonged to his cousin.” Immersed in the white horizonless landscape of North Sweden, Sven stands with his head down and shoulders slumped as he contemplates the loss of two animals. He had raised and cared for his reindeer since it was a calf, nurturing it to support his family, and although some day he would have most likely slaughtered it for food and fur, his expression betrays his sorrow for this waste of life. The intensity in his eyes evokes the fragility of life in this harsh land, the fact that there are fights that no one can win, and how caring for something does not always make it safe.

I love the tenderness of men that I see when they hold a baby, comfort a child, care for their creatures, plant a garden, serve a meal, harvest a tomato. As much as men are often raised to be strong, tough, impenetrable and bold, it is when their tenderness is displayed that I tr uly love them.

This beautiful yet sad image speaks of that tenderness to me. It holds all that emotion and wraps it in silence . Sarah Leen is director of photography for National Geographic Partners and previously worked for nearly 20 years as a freelance photographer contributing to National

Geographic magazine. She has won numerous awards for both photography and editing from the Pictures of the Year competition and the World Press Photo Awards.