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The following article
appeared in The Independent Tribune of Concord, NC, on July
12, 2004.
Gift of
1,000 Words
Local
Photographer celebrates victory over illness, humble
beginnings
By Dale
James
CONCORD -
Michael Brooks' 46th birthday was a modest affair, attended by
a handful of friends and well-wishers.
There was
the usual cakes and presents and a video highlighting Brooks'
work as a photographer. You've probably seen some of his
work, which has appeared on billboards and in numerous
magazines and national advertising campaigns.
One of the
presents was an official looking certificate that reads
"Master's Degree from the School of Hard Knocks." The
certificate was intended as a gag, but it could just as well
have been given in earnest.
The story of
how Brooks went from being a lonely, frightened teenager
living by hit wits on the streets of Atlanta to being a
professional photographer whose work has touched the lives of
people literally around the world is as fantastic as it is
improbable.
"Michael is
one of the most amazing people I've ever met," said Barry
Holcomb, who organized the surprise birthday party.
Brooks was
born with a number of life-threatening ailments. Shortly
after birth, he was placed in ingtensive care and had to be
given seven blood transfusions.
He was also
found to be suffering from epilepsy. He eventually
outgrew most of his other ailments, but the epilepsy
continued to torment his life. As a child, he suffered
seizures in public that made him the object of ridicule.
To compensate, he withdrew into himself.
As he grew
older, people - some well meaning, others not - asked awkward
questions that caused him to withdraw even further.
"People back
then had a fear and misunderstanding of epilepsy," explains
Billy Bushman, one of Brooks' friends.
To escape
the stares and whispers, Brooks dropped out of high school and
eventually wound up in Atlanta. Today he seldom speaks
of his life on the streets, allowing only that "it was
difficult."
His story
might have gone the way of countless other homeless people had
not help arrived from a most unexpected source. After
having a seizure in a public park, Brooks awoke to find
himself staring into the face of David Gene O'Pry, a retired
Army sergeant who took him in and sought medical attention for
his seizures.
With
treatment, Brooks' seizures became more manageable. With
a new home, he no longer had to scrounge a living on the
streets.
O'Pry also
taught Brooks the rudiments of photography. He caught on
quickly. He learned to take a camera apart and put it
back together with his eyes closed.
The
youngster who had always struggled in the classroom found he
had an eye for beauty. He saw everyday things in ways
others did not. The camera provided a means to express
what he had always kept bottled up inside himself, one that
surmounted any labels or physical limitations.
Brooks is
unstinting in his assessment of what that chance meeting
with O'Pry has meant to his life. "He gave me a gift,"
he whispers. "He gave me a life."
Among
friends, Brooks holds the reputation of being something of a
ground -- one even describes personality as that of "a hairy
Southern cowboy."
"I am a
grouch," Brooks admits. "Nobody has to be around either.
When I'm shooting, I even grouch at the camera. It's
just the way I work. It's how I get the perfect shot."
That drive
to get the perfect shot is what sets much of Brooks' work
apart. While others are content to shoot from the
comfortable side of the street, he has, he says, always felt
driven to shoot "from the other side."
When drug
dealers moved into his neighborhood, Brooks fought back with
his camera. He donned fatigues, hid out in the bushes
near his home and snapped numerous photos of license plates
and money changing hands, which he then turned over to the
police.
Looking back
at his life, Brooks refuses to feel sorry for himself.
"I feel I've been given a lot," he insists.
"Photography
has taught me to respect people, to respect nature, and to
respect the time we have on this earth. It's taught me
to be more observant of what we see, to be more appreciative
of what we've been given."
Brooks art
may be viewed online at
www.MGBrooksWORKS.com.
*Contact Dales James at
djames@independenttribune.com or 704-789-9131.
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