Children of Papua 5
Mother of Five
She came out from a cluster of houses as we approached her village near the bank of the Fly River. Four of her kids very closely tagged along as she met us smiling. I was surprised that she actually engaged us in a conversation in English: “My husband is out hunting in the forest”; ” We have five kids”; “My eldest son went with him”; “Welcome to our village”.
The Western Province of Papua New Guinea has the highest average household size (2000 census) at 6 persons per household. This lady’s household is apparently above the provincial and national averages. For some reason I felt embarrassed to ask the why questions and proceeded to exploring the village instead.
Related articles
- Children of Papua 1 (travellingartist.wordpress.com)
- Children of Papua 2 (travellingartist.wordpress.com)
- Children of Papua 3
- The Mighty Fly River (travellingartist.wordpress.com)
- Dug-out 1 (travellingartist.wordpress.com)
- A Papuan Seascape 1 (travellingartist.wordpress.com)
- Village Life 1 (travellingartist.wordpress.com)
The drag of endless mental work in a strange land takes its toll. Fatigue can kill so petty escapades provide hopeful deviations from the brewing madness. An aging DSLR keeps good company to a walk around the neighbourhood, a short drive to a scenic place, or a silent recollection in a quiet nook granting that the host community and the elements of nature would allow one a safe passage to solitude and contemplation. Loneliness quickly turns to joy when something exciting gets captured by the cam’s shutter then set free into the laptop’s screen followed by electric words that rush from the fingers to the keyboard in an effort to describe the moment. Alas, the brain is alive once again!
Wonderful … photo !!!! Amazed that she could talk English.
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Pidgin English became one of the most common language among all tribes since Westerners started visiting PNG. It’s then relatively easy to learn the more ‘conventional’ English. Thanks for the visit, Viveka.
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Great information – learn something new every day.,
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I’m kinda glad + jealous that you get to visit such locations. Meet absolutely amazing people. Take a closer look at their life. Learn how differently the human species are managing and surviving and come back with piles of learning. It’s an experience to cherish.
Go for more!
Love,
Neha
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Many thanks for the encouraging comment, Neha. Yes, there’s still a lot more to see and learn out there. I wish the world was smaller 🙂
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Nice portraits – I like the semi-sepia effect, too. Kind of like the old color photos of the 60s as they fade.
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A bit difficult to find the best treatment for this photo. Tried it in b&w but didn’t like it so I opted for this ‘semi-colored’ version. Thanks, Cindy.
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Mother of 5 boys, or is the little one a girl? Either way, what a woman! I wonder what her husband and eldest were hunting for…is that how they make their living… So many questions. You showed great restraint. Thanks for opening PNG to us all!
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Didn’t get a chance to ask the gender of the kids, either. 🙂 Thanks, T Hollis.
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Great shot!
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Love the semi colored image! You have captured their expressions so well!ccccccc
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Many thanks, Madhu.
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