‘Honesty is very important’

TARA Mati is 58 years old and she has been through a lot in life.

The Cunningham, Suva resident said upon reflection, she’s glad she never lost hope.

“My dad came from Nepal just after the indenture system finished in Fiji,” Ms Mati said.

“He told us that he hid in a boat and came to Fiji without telling his family in Nepal.

“He met my mom Janki in Fiji. They got married and moved to Lakeba. They had seven daughters and five sons on the island. I am their third last child. We were all born and raised on Lakeba Island. Later my father moved to Kanacea in Lau where he passed away in 1976. After my dad’s death, I came to Suva. My mom told me to work in Suva and send her money. I thought of my mom’s struggle and started working here.”

She said the first job she did had a weekly wage of $5.

“I started off as a house girl. One Gujrati family employed me, that time $5 was a lot of money for me.

“After working for one and a half years in Suva, I moved to Nadi where I got a job at Regent Hotel. I worked there for 14 years.

“I first worked in the kitchen. After that I was trained on how to mix liquor and serve so I shifted to the bar. After working there for 14 years,

“I returned to Suva and found a job at Sun Gold, a jewelry shop.”

Ms Mati said she was twice betrayed by her partners.

“In 1983, I got married to a man from Rakiraki who was an accountant in a shipping company.

After staying together for three years, he went to Canada and never returned. I had one child from him and he returned to see his son after 19 years.

“My struggle continued. I met another man from Navua who promised to give me a better life, so I settled with him and we had a daughter. But unfortunately, after a few years, he left us. He left when my daughter was just one year eight months old.

“I did not lose hope and continued to work and support my two children.”

After retirement she managed to buy a house which she now lives in.

“I bought the house through my FNPF money.

“I started a small canteen at home to earn a living.

“Just four months ago, my former boss at Homeland Restaurant, for whom I worked in 1989, saw my sister in the market and asked about me.

“Through her, he contacted me and offered me a job here in the market.

“He is a farmer and after supplying to the middlemen, whatever is left, he brings it here to the stall and I sell them.

“I didn’t want to work but then I thought about how he helped me a lot during my hard times.

“He called me and said, ‘I’ll give you the money you want, just come and look after my stall here’. I couldn’t say no to him. I start at 7am and knock off at 5.30pm.

“He collects the day’s revenue from my home. He has his own customers and orders. Some customers come and collect their supply from the stall.

“He needed someone reliable to look after the stall so that’s why he employed me.”

Ms Mati believes honesty always pays off.

“If you work honestly, your bosses never forget you. They’ll always remember you. Honesty is very important.”

Her message to all the single mother’s is to never lose hope.

“Life is always full of challenges. This doesn’t mean that you cannot do anything and move on.

“There are so many opportunities, you just have to look for it,” Ms Mati said.