Project Peter

Project Peter

I met Peter who is from Trinidad on the streets of Reading in the United Kingdom.. What first caught my eye about Peter was his brilliant white beard as I passed him on the street. His clothes looked old and in need of repair or better yet replacement with a bottle in one hand and a cigarette in the other at about midday. Peter seemed cheerful as he walked along the street humming to himself. I went back and stopped him and asked him if I could take his picture, a little risky admittedly as he could have been drunk or high on drugs. Luckily Peter was sober enough to hold a conversation and told of how he had come over in the late 50s as part of a drive by the UK government of the day to fill job roles that had shortages, bus and train drivers I believe. He had settled here, married and had children. However his marriage broke down and he was estranged from his children and now sleeps rough or in a shelter. He talked of how he wanted to return to his beautiful homeland but with no family still alive or living there or money for relocation the life he now lives is his only option. The final picture of Peter looking into the sky is the point when he considered memories of his homeland.