Tibetans In Exile

Pema Lhamo, 8, fits herself into a box to enact her escape scene, in Dharmsala, India. Lhamo fled to India when she was 3 years old in a box and now lives with her grandmother.

A car moves on a serpentine road past snow-capped peaks near Zoji La in Indian-Kashmir, India. Many Tibetans say that being in the mountains make them miss their homeland.

Dorjee Tashi adjust the beret he calls "Che Guevera cap" as he poses for a photograph in front of a flag of Tibet in his room in New Delhi, India. Tashi had just returned from a protest rally when he received news of his father’s death in a voice message stored on his phone. His one wish was to meet his father again and considers this unfulfilled wish as part of his karma. He says his life is now for the country.

Kalsang, 19, at Sarah college library near Dharmsala, India. She escaped from Tibet into India in 2004 and says she misses her parents more as she grows older. Kalsang is currently studying Buddhism and says it helps her understand the world and to be in control of her emotions.

Thupten Kalsang in his tattoo studio in Dharamshala, India. Being separated from his family for 23 years, Kalsang rarely thinks about his parents. He says his friends are his family as he has spent his entire life with them.

A 27-year-old Tibetan boy, who did not want to disclose his identity, sits in his room in New Delhi, India. He escaped into India in 1992 and says the 22 years away from his family has made him strong and emotionless. His mother has grown old and conveys her yearning to meet him but he doubts whether he will get a visa. The Tibetan says he misses his parents when he watches family drama movies.

Dorjee, 38, displays a photograph of his father, left, and himself, center, taken in Tibet, in Dharamsala, India. Dorjee said he held back his tears when he spoke with his parents on the phone after a separation period of 27 years. He exchanged a few words with his father but said his mother fainted on hearing his voice.

Tsering, only one name given, with his pet dog in his room in New Delhi, India. Tsering escaped to India in 1997 when he was around 6 years old. Tsering says his mother cries when they speak on the phone and it makes his heart feels empty for several days. She still tells him not to go swimming or go trekking alone. “For my mother I am still that six year old boy she sent away," he said.

Kalsang Tsering said he missed his family when he was ill and in hospital with nobody to care for him. He now rents a room from a woman who treats him like a son and says the feeling of being cared for is wonderful.

These photos, all of Tibetans who have not seen their parents for decades, since coming to India, are my attempt to understand the ideas of family, home, belonging and nostalgia. Some of us cling to family artifacts, some cling to old photos.

Across the years, and with so much distance, everything changes. Time heals many wounds, but also works in strange ways.

Tsering Choephel, a Tibetan who left home 23 years ago, said he sometimes dreams of seeing his family again. Often, he mourns the fact that he barely misses them.”The great tragedy of my life is not being separated from my family, but being separated from the sensibility of missing them, after living without them for decades.”

I did this project for the Associated Press while I was working.