Revelers stained with colored powder cheer during the Holi festival celebrations in Chennai, India, 08 March 2023. Holi, also known as the “Festival Of Colors” is an ancient Indian Hindu festival symbolizing the victory of good over evil and marking the arrival of spring. It is celebrated with joyful gatherings during which revelers cover each other in colored powders. (Photo by Idrees Mohammed/EPA/EFE)

A man applies colored powder on his friend's face during celebrations marking Holi, the Hindu festival of colors, in Mumbai, India, Tuesday, March 7, 2023. The festival heralds the arrival of spring. (Photo by Rajanish Kakade/AP Photo)

Artists perform during a slum party in Oworonshoki district of Lagos, Nigeria, 24 September, 2024. The slum party is a yearly artistic dance festival initiated by Ennovate Dance House. It highlights the positive sides of the slum community and brings hope to the inhabitants. (Photo by Emmanuel Adegboye/EPA/EFE)

Former “The Hills” star Audrina Patridge and her on again, off again boyfriend Corey Bohan get into a huge fight after attending Matthew Morrison's Halloween Party at Hyde Nightclub in West Hollywood, California on October 25, 2014. Audrina and Corey, who recently split up this past summer, seemed to be in great spirits before the party started but afterwards it was a whole different story! The not so happy couple argued on a bench and at one point a visibly upset Audrina sat on the sidewalk crying! (Photo by FameFlynet)

An Airbus A400M military aircraft lands at the ILA Berlin Air Show in Schoenefeld, south of Berlin, Germany, June 1, 2016. The Aerospace Exhibition at Schoenefeld Airport near Berlin takes place from June 1 till 4. (Photo by Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters)

Young girls attend a training session in MGFSO Olympic reserve school in Moscow on May 30, 2016. (Photo by Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP Photo)

Vanessa, thirty-five, had three children with an abusive husband. She “lost her mind, started doing heroin”, after losing the children, who were taken away and given to her mother. The drugs led to homelessness and prostitution. She grew up on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx, but now spends her time in Hunts Point, “trying to survive everyday. Just doing whatever it takes”.

Honorable Mention: “The Storm”. During I was taking photo with my nephew, the storm came and I caught this beautiful moment. Photo location: Kocaeli, Turkey. (Photo and caption by Aytül Akbaş/National Geographic Photo Contest)