JULIA PICKS UP THE PIECES
Julia picks up the pieces after quarantine
THE year 2020 proved to be one of the most difficult years for millions of people whose lives changed forever when the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world’s economy to its knees.
Livelihoods were lost and millions more contemplated their future as losses accumulated in every aspect of life.
For Fiji, thousands of people found themselves out of work while hundreds more faced the threat of a deadly disease.
One such person who found herself staring down the proverbial barrel of a gun was mother of two Julia Talei Ratumaibuca Wakolo.
It’s hard to believe that exactly 12 months ago, Julia was shut off from the rest of the world in a quarantined facility at the Nadi Hospital while she was three months pregnant with her second child.
Just days before March 19, she was leading one of her first Zumba classes in Lautoka. A health and fitness focused program that had a promising future as interest grew.
“I can’t believe that its been one year already,” she says.
“I was three months pregnant when I went into quarantine and at that time I had just found out I was pregnant.
“So when I got the news and knowing that I was pregnant, I have never been so scared of death at that time.
“We were just starting to learn more about COVID and all we know was that people were dying from it. So I was really scared especially for my unborn child.
“I felt so vulnerable and being pregnant I knew there was a high risk that my baby could get infected.”
She says her days in quarantine were one of the most challenging moments of her life.
“Every night I spent in quarantine, I was crying and I was so angry. I felt so alone and I started to go crazy in the sense that not having people around you to help you through it was the worst. “I started to have a mental breakdown.” She says climbing her way out of the dark hole took a long time.
“After I was cleared I found myself not being able to go back to my husband and son who lived in Lautoka.
“When I came out of quarantine, Lautoka was still on lockdown so I had to find a place to stay. I couldn’t go back home because my family was wary of having me at home.
“People were really scared and I can understand now why a lot of people couldn’t take me in but I’m grateful to one of my former colleagues who agreed to pay for my taxi to Suva and let me stay with them until the lockdown was over.”
She said the months that followed were spent on self-care.
“I had to seek counselling and during that time I worked on my relationship with God. It has been a very difficult and challenging journey, but as I look back now I can say that I am truly blessed. “I look at that experience as a miracle. “The biggest miracle is my soon to be six-month-old baby boy who reminds me every day to count my blessings. That it is not the end of the world when you are in a very dire situation.”
After months of re-establishing her family life, the proud mother is once again conducting weekly Zumba classes for Lautoka residents.
“I started my classes again in October last year and again I’ve been truly blessed to have people who were supportive of this passion of mine.
“The classes that I’m conducting now are even bigger than the classes I had before the pandemic.
“Our numbers have doubled and its been really great to see more people coming to join our classes.
“I’ll be forever grateful to other Zumba instructors in the country especially the likes of Litiana Miller who were very supportive in my journey to continue with my program.
“I’m looking forward to what the future has in store.
“It might not be what I had anticipated one year ago, but I now I see that whatever life throws my way with the right mindset I can overcome them.”