Motivated by her loved ones

By Vatapuia Maiava and Ilia L Likou 23 September 2016, 12:00AM

When you make your loved ones your motivation to work harder, you will definitely be able to move mountains for them.

There’s no denying the hardships faced by many in Samoa but working hard will help nullify those hardships.

That’s how Teuila Fa’asalafa from the village of Lotopa sees life.

“It’s no secret that life here in Samoa is tough but you won’t get anything from being lazy,” she told the Village Voice.

“If people don’t go and look for ways of making money then they won’t have anything to look after their families with.

“You can’t just sit around and expect everything to be taken care of. You also can’t just sit on your backside and rely on the strength of others to live.

“Stand on your own two feet and look for money to buy food and to take care of your own children.”

Teuila says that there will be a day when parents can finally rest but not while the children are still young.

“Right now it’s the parents’ job to go out and work hard to take care of their families and not send their children at a young age to do it for them,” she said.

“The children belong in school right now and once they are adults then we can finally rest while they go out and look for money to take care of us.”

Earning a bit of money from selling baby coconuts and eggplants, Teuila says the hard work is worth it in the end.

“I have been selling these baby coconuts for three years now,” she said.

“If I were to be employed then I would receive my pay after a week but doing this gets money and puts food on the table every day.

“I would make a bit over $100 every day from selling baby coconuts and eggplants.

“The only person in my family who’s employed is my cousin and it’s just my husband and I who have a market stall business.”

Teuila only has one vision; she wants her children to have a good life after school.

“My one and only goal is for my children to finish school and for their lives to be blessed,” she said.

“They can also help out a lot with looking after the family once they finish school but right now my duty is to work hard for them.”

Teuila then added that aside from daily hardships in Samoa, there is another growing problem.

“One thing I have noticed with the development the government has been doing is that there are hardly any Samoan business owners,” she said.

“I see a lot of businesses owned by the Chinese and others from overseas. I see that as a problem because we don’t know when we will die and the future of the nation will be left with our children.

“Who knows, foreigners might try and take over in the future.”

By Vatapuia Maiava and Ilia L Likou 23 September 2016, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

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