I was 18 years old when I first set eyes on Ken McLeod. My first impression was: “Oh my God, he’s handsome!” Then shortly after: “But he’s unreachable. Why would he go out with an island girl like me?”
I’d just finished high school and was working as a bartender on the island of Vava’u. Ken was 28, an electrician on an Australian government aid project, and he seemed to me to be a man of the world.
There were so many reasons why I thought Ken wouldn’t give me a second glance. I was shy and I truly believed I was unattractive. Growing up in the islands, light skin was seen as more beautiful. I was darker than my siblings, I had frizzy hair, and we were poor, so I’d grown up in a traditional Tongan hut with no shoes, no nice clothes.
There was one thing, however, that gave me confidence. I was good at school. If you show even a little potential in Tonga, the whole village is right behind you. If I wanted to get out of chores at home – cooking, collecting firewood, lighting the fire – I’d pick up a book, because then I’d be exempt. I’d graduated dux of the school and could speak a little English, which came in handy now because – when my shyness didn’t get the better of me – I could chat across the bar with Ken.
I don’t think it was love at first sight for Ken, but there was a definite attraction for conversation and companionship. He came into the bar most days after work, and after a while I noticed a twinkle in his eyes.
Ken and I started dating. Tonga is a religious island and Sunday is a day of rest. Everyone goes to church. Back in the ’80s, there were no shops open, no flights out, even swimming on Sunday was an offence, and Ken and I were the worst offenders.
この記事は The Australian Women's Weekly の May 2023 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は The Australian Women's Weekly の May 2023 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
Hitting a nerve
Regulating the vagus nerve with its links to depression, anxiety, arthritis and diabetes - could aid physical and mental wellbeing.
Take me to the river
With a slew of new schedules and excursions to explore, the latest river cruises promise to give you experiences and sights you won’t see on the ocean.
The last act
When family patriarch Tom Edwards passes away, his children must come together to build his coffin in four days, otherwise they will lose their inheritance. Can they put their sibling rivalry aside?
MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN
When Alexei Navalny died in a brutal Arctic prison, Vladimir Putin thought he had triumphed over his most formidable opponent. Until three courageous women - Alexei's mother, wife and daughter - took up his fight for freedom.
The wines and lines mums
Once only associated with glamorous A-listers, cocaine is now prevalent with the soccer-mum set - as likely to be imbibed at a school fundraiser as a nightclub. The Weekly looks inside this illegal, addictive, rising trend.
Jenny Liddle-Bob.Lucy McDonald.Sasha Green - Why don't you know their names?
Indigenous women are being murdered at frightening rates, their deaths often left uninvestigated and widely unreported. Here The Weekly meets families who are battling grief and desperate for solutions.
Growing happiness
Through drought flood and heartbreak, Jenny Jennr's sunflowers bloom with hope, sunshine and joy
"Thank God we make each other laugh"
A shared sense of humour has seen Aussie comedy couple Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall conquer the world. But what does life look like when the cameras go down:
Winter baking with apples and pears
Celebrate the season of Australian apples and pears with these sweet bakes that will keep the midwinter blues away.
Budget dinner winners
Looking for some thrifty inspiration for weeknight dinners? Try our tasty line-up of low-cost recipes that are bound to please everyone at the table.
