It’s been quite a while since I last found myself on a St. Thomas Carnival parade route. Actually, it’s been since the end of my senior year in high-school when I played steel plan with the Rising Stars for the last time before I graduated and went off to college.

I haven’t really been back home for Carnival at all but with the way that life has been life-ing : delivering so many unexpected changes and twists, turns, and losses, I figured ok, why not celebrate a little carnival * in my own way * again.

So in 2024, I decided to photograph my mom and her friends, as she participated in the Sparkle Carnival Troupe ✨ Madras in Motion ✨ founded by her friend Annette Hill-Bowring. The troupe has a mission of preserving the legacy of highlighting aspects of the Virgin Islands cultural traditions and history with beautifully themed costumes during the Carnival parade.

So this year the Sparkle Carnival Troupe paid tribute to the USVI culture by spotlighting the beautiful birds found in the Virgin Islands aka showcasing a "Birds in Paradise" parade entry for carnival.

The troupe of 30 tramped along the parade route behind a float that represented a Caribbean house with the traditional red roof and yellow walls and was surrounded by a green garden.

They danced throughout the parade route in feathers made up of hues of emerald, violet, and indigo to represent the bananaquit, humming, and parakeet birds - USVI's National Birds. And along side them were birdwatchers with binoculars.

All in all, though it was hot as heck, with a heatstroke right around the corner, it was a memory worth experiencing and I can’t wait to do it again some day.

For anyone who hasn’t been to the Virgin Islands, you should check it out and definitely check out the carnival season :)