Hard work is all I know

By Vatapuia Maiava 02 December 2016, 12:00AM

Rain or shine, Fata Viane from the village of Afega goes to work.

Aged 50, Fata walks every day to sell cooked taro on the streets. 

His worried children beg him to relax at home but he has become too accustomed to the work he does. He says he has done this for far too long to quit now.

“Three of my children currently hold steady jobs,” Fata told the Village Voice.

“My children always tell me to just relax and stay at home while they work but I am so used to this. I have been doing this for so long and I can’t just quit.

“This is how I put all my children through school and how I earned money to feed them. So I will continue to work hard until I have had enough.”

Fata says that although his children have jobs, the money he makes still goes a long way in his family.

“The reason why I do this is obviously to look for money for the family,” he said.

“I walk in the hot sun and deliver these cooked taro and breadfruit so that I can take care of the family and put the children through school.

“The money I earn goes towards a lot of things; but the one priority I have is to take care of those I love.”

Fata agrees that the cost of living is very high right now but it’s not really news to him.

“Yes I agree that the cost of living is very high and it affects a lot of people in Samoa but it’s nothing new,” he said.

“I’m used to the prices of everything at the shops. Things like chicken, tin fish, salt and sugar, those goods may be increasing in price but it’s still affordable to majority of Samoa.

“The high prices should just make you want to work harder to be able to purchase things.”

With the children’s pay only coming in at the end of the week, Fata says that the work he does is great because it gets the family money every day.

“A lot of the money I make is saved in a bank account,” he said.

“I use a bit of it for the family’s daily needs and to help out around the house. My children get their pay at the end of the week so that’s when my money comes in handy.

“At the end of the day I am able to make about $90. Other days I make $120 so the money is pretty good.”

Furthermore, Fata gave a little insight into his daily routine.

“I live in Afega so I make my way all the way here every day to sell these,” he said.

“So every morning I prepare myself for a long day in the sun then I start my work. I only rest when I return home and after that I prepare some more cooked items for the next day.

“I deliver everything by foot.”

By Vatapuia Maiava 02 December 2016, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

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