My little girl met a new friend just the other day
On the playground at school
Between the tires and the swings
But she came home with tear-filled eyes
And she said to me, "Daddy, Alyssa lies"
Well I just brushed it off at first
'Cause I didn't know how much my little girl had been hurt
Or the things she had seen
I wasn't ready when I said you can tell me
And she said
"Alyssa lies to the classroom
Alyssa lies everyday at school
Alyssa lies to the teachers
As she tries to cover every bruise"
My little girl laid her head down that night to go to sleep
As I stepped out the room I heard her say
A prayer so soft and sweet
"God bless my mom and my dad
And my new friend Alyssa"
Oh I know she needs you bad because
Alyssa lies to the classroom
Alyssa lies everyday at school
Alyssa lies to the teachers
As she tries to cover every bruise
I had the worst night of sleep in years
As I tried to think of a way to calm her fears
I knew exactly what I had to do
But when we got to school on Monday I heard the news
My little girl asked me why everybody looked so sad
The lump in my throat grew bigger
With every question that she asked
Until I felt the tears run down my face
And I told her that Alyssa wouldn't be at school today
'Cause she doesn't lie in the classroom
She doesn't lie anymore at school
Alyssa lies with Jesus
Because there's nothing anyone would do
Tears filled my eyes
When my little girl asked me why
Alyssa lies
Oh daddy, oh daddy tell me why
Alyssa lies
So obviously my idea came from this song. I wanted to show that not all families are happy environments and there are many children that deal with some form of abuse at home. My children mean so much to me so thinking that there are so many whose homes are not a safe haven makes me very sad. I wish this wasn't the case but it is, I am not expecting much from this score as I think I may get hit with a lot of low votes due to the subject matter but maybe the next time you see a child covered in bruises and a look of fear in their eyes you will feel for them.
Oh and after I got the shot I rewarded my girl by taking photos of her jumping on the bed :)
[Dec. 6th, 2011 09:07:39 PM]
My girls reward for modeling for me:
Statistics
Place: 46 out of 64 Avg (all users): 5.0185 Avg (commenters): 6.4375 Avg (participants): 5.0909 Avg (non-participants): 4.9915 Views since voting: 2568 Views during voting: 337 Votes: 162 Comments: 30 Favorites: 3 (view)
Thank you all for your comments. Based on those and the scoring distribution I would call this a successful entry. I am a bit surprised it finished so low based on a divorce entry ribboning in the last family challenge and judi's Fragile entry in the delicate challenge pulling a 6. Oh well, still happy with the shot. Now to try and get a good score with my daughter lol.
I guess the harsh reality subject matter didn't appeal to the masses; in an 'emotional' or 'gritty' challenge, this would have ribboned. You were absolutely robbed in my opinion.
I think I have rarely seen such an effective concept development scoring so low, and surely not one scoring so low *because* of its effectiveness.
Any plan for the girl to take drama school?
Very well done, Joshua, congratulations!
I guess people only like to see the good and nice side of family life. Show them something that is not disturbs them.
Yes, it is disturbing but this sort of family is far too common in the world. Well done for being brave and showing the side of family life nobody wants to see or believe happens.
I totally agree with you. IMHO this is the best picture of this contest!! I gave it 10! :-)
I guess people only like to see the good and nice side of family life. Show them something that is not disturbs them.
Yes, it is disturbing but this sort of family is far too common in the world. Well done for being brave and showing the side of family life nobody wants to see or believe happens.
This is a powerful piece, Joshua, and it deserved to finish higher. I wasn't even aware of that song but the meaning was obvious. It was also quite obvious that your depiction of that aspect of family was social commentary and NOT something practiced at your place. I gave you a 9. It's lovely to see your daughter enjoying the bed-jumping.
A powerful photo that has me wanting to vote low by the mere fact that I hate what it depicts. And yet, this is a feeling you created intentionally and powerfully, and that should be rewarded.
This scares the bejeesus out of me and I hope that it is absolutely not common place in your family, though I know it is in some. If a family does this, can it still be considered a family?
Anyways, an 8 from me because you have absolutely succeeded in what you set up to do in telling a powerful story. I still don't like the photo though :-P
This is a very well presented and emotive image - even the tones look like bruises. How sad that this is often the dark side of family life. I can relate to the concept as there were episodes like this in my own childhood. I think it was a more mainstream child raising method back then(?)
Ok, after much pondering, I bump this to 10.
I find the subject matter particularly disturbing, but angle, framing and pose are just right. And that's a sad, pretty realistic, slice of reality.
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Kick in the guts image for this challenge. Very disturbing. 8
I absolutely adore that song and this is a very emotive shot to go with the title. As sad as it is, it's interesting to see a sad take on the family idea; It would be so sad if this is your typical view of family, I hope your family memories are not like this. Overall, the shot is sharp, well composed and emotional. Well done.
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