Rediscovering Paradise
Written and photographed by Katherine Diaz Villegas
Though I was born in Medellín, Colombia, I have little-to-no memories of my first home. The month before my fourth birthday, my parents and I moved to the United States and were granted residency — and a couple years later, citizenship. The compromise of becoming citizens was not being able to go back to Colombia until the process was completed. This didn’t happen until the summer I turned 15 years old.
I wasn’t uncultured or unaccustomed to the lifestyle of Colombia because of the household I grew up in. My mom ensured that I knew how to speak, write and read Spanish — and retaught me when English took over. My brothers blasted batchta and reggaeton and, along with my dad’s stories of his life growing up, I felt very connected to Colombia.
Yet, it’s an unexplainable feeling to go back to a place where your family resided and get to know it for the first time. It’s like putting together a jigsaw puzzle. You typically start with the frame and work your way in. Going to Colombia felt like the final piece of the puzzle. I could grasp the full picture. I could always see it, but being there in person and having a full circle moment was an experience I’ll never forget. It’s strange to look back and think about a time when Colombia had no real meaning to me, besides being my birthplace. But, even if the location I grew up in was different, the people and culture never changed.
Photography is how I retain my memories. I’ve experienced so much that I forget there was once a time I had no idea what it was like to physically be in my house in Colombia, hug my grandmother or witness the beauty of the culture. I try to capture those moments and my journey to them. The landscape and architecture in Colombia mark my route to get to know everything for the first time. From the secrets of the Amazon rainforest to the snow-covered Nevado del Ruiz, rolling hills filled with quaint farmhouses to the architectural influences from Europe, all of these elements make Colombia a unique paradise.
