Lockington's Everyday Fiji ... Life Goes On

Allen Lockington is a self-employed customs agent and business consultant who has regular articles published in Fiji. I thank Allen for permission to reprint some of them in this political blog. They remind us that life goes on, whatever the political situation. And it's good to know that.

  Cassava Gold Mine

We were sitting at the office porch when  friend we hadn’t seen for a long time happened to walk by. He came in out of the hot sun, sat down and leaned his cane knife and digging fork on the wall and put his sack of cassava in the shade. He had bele storks and a lithe bag of chillies he had  picked form his garden. After greetings and a bottle of cool water he said, “Bula all of you, how is the import export business going.” Then he added, “Any body got a vacancy?” 

 
Before anyone of us could answer one chap said, “You have a real good job there. You have a lot of land and can make more money than all of us put together.” 
 
He laughed and said, “Sa, boy, this job is tough.” Then he looked down and realised what he just said. But we encouraged him to plant and we would buy his produce. Now he is a happy person because when he had started planting, it was just for his family to eat, he never looked beyond that to plant a little more on his abundant land to sell and make a profit so he could earn money. His wife works in a restaurant and earns around $110 a week. We told him to plant more cassava and sell it to the restaurant. He looked at us in wonderment and smiled and said, thank you. And he went his way. 
 
Then I thought to myself, how many people out there are sitting on partially used land and can earn more if they would just put a little more effort into their life. No, some people want to work for someone and earn $110 a week and be a slave to some uncaring boss or manager. 
 
But the chap is now happy because he does a little fishing and sells it with his cassava.
Oh if only we can persuade out people that they are sitting on gold mines. But its useless sitting there, they have to work the land to get the gold. And if we can convince them that they can be their own boss and that earning money is about the glands – the sweat glands.