En La Calle

I met Juan Luiz in downtown Mexico City, near the big central plaza called the Zocalo. As he sat on the curb, I watched him delicately rip strands of thread out of cloth to form the petal of a flower he would later make to sell on the street. "I am not used to people talking to me," he sighed while lighting a cigarette. "I consider this a kind of friendship."

Juan has been homeless for 14 years, nearly half his life.

In our time together, Juan told me the stories of his childhood and life on the street. He spoke of friends, family troubles and ideas of hope.

"My life may not change in a radical way but I’m trying to find peace within the struggle of my life."