Vatawaqa

I miss this place. I miss the people. Their faces. I promise you haven’t seen smiles like theirs. They are contagious. At first I walked timidly to the door of their homes. “May I take your photo, please?” I shyly asked.

“Yes, of course! Where are you from? Come in! How long are you staying? Do you like Fiji?”

Yes, I do.

I love the way they insist on getting to know a person. I adore their generous spirit. They would literally give you the shirt off their back… or climb a tree to find you the best mangoes ever. That’s no exaggeration either. I love the way they laugh even though I couldn’t tell if it was with me or at the way I stumbled through their culture. (I’m pretty sure it was the second ; ) And I had a huge fat crush on the soft light that fell through this neighborhood and all the colors and textures that made up the homes.

This is Vatawaqa, a squatters village, in Suva Fiji. The government does not want them here. Most of the people who call this home do not have jobs. They have nowhere else to go. But they are beautiful, and God loves them beyond measure.