It’s the little things that matter

By Sarafina Sanerivi 10 January 2017, 12:00AM

For Aitupe Leuta, from the village of Ta’elefaga, Fagaloa, Samoa is that one place he will always call home.

Everything about life in the rural village puts a big grin on his face.

Whether it’s the simplicity of life, the relaxing atmosphere or the many different options people have of making money, there no other place like home for Aitupe than Fagaloa village.

“Life in the rural villages is actually pretty great,” he told the Village Voice.

“I come from the village of Fagaloa. The reason I love living in my rural village is because it’s so free and simple; I can just sit around in my piece of land and do whatever.

“No money goes towards buying land or a house, and in my village, we don’t have to spend money on water. We just pay for the electricity and that’s it.”

Aitupe explains how even if you are unemployed in the village, you have nothing at all to worry about.

“Another great thing about living in my village is that even though you can’t find a job, there’s nothing to worry about,” he said.

“There are so many ways in which we can make money for our daily needs. All you need to do is use your head and be creative in looking for money generating ideas.

“You can even make money through a small plantation.”

With land surrounding you and the ocean just on the other side, Aitupe says there is no excuse to not make a good living out in the rural areas.

“We have land,” he said.

“That’s one way of making money and if you manage your earnings wisely then you can even get a house or a car for your family.

“You have to always be smart in your decision making and you will be alright. It’s also great that we have the sea nearby because we can even earn a bit of money from that.

“Life is so easy if you make it out to be. The best thing I can say is to be wise in managing all that you make because that’s how you get yourself a decent life.”

And with the village focusing a lot on ava farming, Aitupe says that Fagaloa is doing pretty well so far.

“The one thing I focus a lot of my time on is our ava (grog) plantation,” he said.

“Almost everyone in my village grows this crop and it’s pretty good for money making. We deliver our harvest to many shops in town.

“Sometimes we even deliver to faraway villages and the money we make is pretty great. When the ava harvest is great then you can easily make $800 a day.

“That’s only if you are able to sell 100 pack. If you have 1000 packs for sale then you have done really well and your profits will shoot up.

“But it all depends on the market. This is what I love about life in my village.”

By Sarafina Sanerivi 10 January 2017, 12:00AM

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