Faith Thelma Jeet is a lawyer who hopes to open a law firm to assist those who aren’t able to access legal representation.
The 22-year-old from Labasa says life growing up was good and simple, but the loss of her brother was the greatest pain of her life.
“I lost my brother six years ago. He did not die a normal death nor was he sick,” Ms Jeet says.
“I think I was depressed and struggled mentally for a long time, but one of the things I am proud of was that he was like me.
“I always feel sad every time I talk about him because he was my inspiration, my mentor, whether it was in church or in life.”
Ms Jeet loves her brother and knows that if he were alive today, he would probably be cheering her on.
“But it happened and I had to find a way to keep moving because we all have our fair share of troubles. It’s up to us to face them and walk past them.
“The experience has made me thick-skinned and bold, which has helped in my career considering the strictness and seriousness there is with law and in the legal field.”
Like the usual journey of finding your true calling, Ms Jeet also has had her fair share of dreams and aspirations
“A celebrity honestly, I wanted to be like Justin Bieber, private bus and all.
“I had never had any particular profession that I really desired. I felt everything was possible. Inevitably, I felt like I could be anything.
“A fire woman one minute and the next a call agent. It’s funny because I never thought of becoming a lawyer.
“Since I was so unsure about what I wanted to do, when it came to Form 7 I had to decide on a profession, since it was the beginning of sending applications to all the universities.
“My uncertainty over a career path finally caught up to give me pressure to choose something.”
Ms Jeet says a prayer to the Almighty can do wonders for those who are unsure of the career path to follow.
“I spoke to a few of my mentors and they advised me to pray and ask God for directions.
“There was a community awareness program conducted by the Ministry of Health & Medical Services, to which two nurses and a lawyer had come to educate people about breast cancer and resorting to legal services with domestic violence at my church.
“When I was informed that a lawyer was coming home, the amount of respect and honour people had by just saying the profession even without seeing the person, was a view for me.
“I was fond of asking people about their life and work and I was a little hesitant as to whether I should ask her or not but she was so kind and genuine, she explained her passion in law.
“Nobody had ever elaborated about their profession, but she had the heart and time to let me know that you become the voice of people.”
Ms Jeet says the lawyer shared with her one of the best pieces of advice for her: “You might lack skill, you might lack hope, you might lack money, but if you have grit, determination and persistence, you will always make it through to brighter days because you can outlast the days that make you want to give up.
“If you learn to become comfortable with the discomfort of rejection, uncertainty and obscurity, you will forever persevere to claim the moments of joy and accomplishment you seek.”
