Lifou

My Photo scholarship 2010 entry

Worldwide | Sunday, October 17, 2010 | 5 photos

Never having travelled overseas before, there was something almost unsettling in witnessing the stark contrasts of our indulgent western culture with that of the rich tradition and simplicity of the islanders, with the notion of the tourism industry as a thread loosely weaving through, and binding the two together. It was essentially a world of contrast to my own. What was the most fascinating, however, was the shared humanity that existed, especially between the children. Despite having, in materialistic terms, seemingly less than we did, the people of Lifou were incredibly vibrant ad joyous people. It ended up being a meditative experience for all.

Only recently, when I was talking about my university studies, a friend of my mother looked at me and asked where they would take me. I told her I didn’t know, but it would work out, in the end. She shook her head and asked “but what do you want to achieve? Why don’t you aim for something higher? Don’t you want to make a difference?” I was silent and the conversation moved on, but it occurred to me that basically, I really just want to make a difference to people’s lives. To help, in some way; to expose people to new ideas, to widen horizons; to change the way people see the world. Photography allows me to do that, and I’ll admit that I currently know little about the practice, in comparison to what I could know, but this has driven my passion for it. I love new experiences and knowledge and have a thirst for adventure, and as my dad has always said that youth is wasted on the young, I have realised that I really don’t want my youth wasted on me.