She stood quietly among the younger recipients, many of them still in primary or secondary school, as names were called and stories of opportunity unfolded around her.
This moment, however, carried a different meaning for Teresia Tikivakatini Moceituba.
The mother of four had travelled from Levuka, Fiji’s old capital, to Suva to receive a Westpac Women and Girls Education Grant — an opportunity she sees as another step towards a dream she has carried for years.
Originally from Lovoni, Levuka, with maternal links to Tokou, Moceituba knows what it means to put education on hold.
After completing high school in 2004, she studied graphic design at the Fiji Institute of Technology for about one and a half years.
Graphic design was already close to her heart.
“I just love to draw,” she said.
But financial difficulties would eventually interrupt her education.
In 2007, she enrolled at the University of Fiji to study information technology but was unable to complete her studies because she could not pay her fees in full.
Her parents had struggled to provide for the family. Her father worked as a carpenter when work was available, while her mother worked at PAFCO in Levuka.
Much of the family income went towards basic needs, leaving little for education.
Moceituba eventually stayed home and devoted herself to raising her children.
She undertook short courses along the way, including hospitality training while living in Nadi, but her ambition to continue her education never completely disappeared.
Now, with her son in Year 13, she has found renewed motivation to pursue the future she once imagined for herself.
“I wanted to show my son that I can do it,” she said.
Her goal remains unchanged — to become a graphic designer and eventually work as a civil servant in the tourism sector.
The journey is not easy. Balancing family responsibilities and education has meant moving at a slower pace than she once hoped.
But for Moceituba, slow does not mean impossible.
“It’s a slow but sure process for me,” she said.
“Just take the first step to move forward.”
For a woman who once had to choose between family responsibilities and education, that first step represents more than returning to study, but a reminder that sometimes a dream can wait — but it does not have to disappear.
