The Day Is Still Long
I often think about how much of a woman’s life is spent taking care of things. Of people, of homes, of the land. How much of herself she gives without ever being asked what she needs in return. And how, somewhere along the way, this becomes so ordinary that we almost stop seeing it.
The Day Is Still Long is a photographic project about the women who work in Egypt’s agricultural fields, whose labor is essential yet remains unseen. For generations, women have worked the land, planting, harvesting, and feeding families far beyond their own. Yet their contributions remain undervalued, as though this work were simply another part of being a woman.
For many, agricultural labor is not a choice but a continuation of upbringing, necessity, or inherited roles passed from mothers to daughters. Despite long hours, physical exhaustion, and low wages, they remain among the most vulnerable workers, often without adequate legal, health, or social protection.
Their days often begin before sunrise, gathering to wait for transport to distant fields, where they spend hours working under the heat. And when they return home, another part of the day begins. There are children to look after, meals to prepare, homes to care for. The work changes, but rarely seems to end.
As a woman, I find myself thinking about the expectations we inherit without always realizing it. How we grow up learning to give, to endure, to put others before ourselves. How these expectations pass from mothers to daughters, becoming so deeply woven into our understanding of love and responsibility that we rarely stop to question them.
But I don’t want these women to be seen only through their hardships. There is so much more to their lives than the work they do, and I want my photographs to make room for that too.
Through this project, I am trying to understand how easily a woman’s life can become defined by everything she does for others, and how much of who we are can get lost in everything that is expected of us.
And still, the day is long.
