Vanuakula: The Village Time Keeper
by gppirsa
When they say nothing is ever on time in Fiji, it’s an anomaly for Penioni Koro of Vanuakula village in Ra, who lives a life perfectly on time. His people call him the village time-keeper.
Penioni Koro's life is all about the importance of time management and disciplinary measures that has created a reputation to be the most outstanding in Vanuakula village today.
Sometimes praised and other times ridiculed for his military precision with time, Penioni was never really military personnel.
But his appreciation of time is a value practised through the years. Up at the break of dawn, he heads off to the plantation. He is back at the village by 7 am for breakfast.
“Waking up early every day is critical. If you miss that, you’re missing a lot, and time will always be against you throughout the day. The same goes for rest and the time to sleep.” Koro said.
Koro’s social life ends at 10 pm, not a minute more.
He refers to his wristwatch as the most valuable asset in his life.
He said that time is the essence of a fruitful result to achieve anything. Whether farming or any other employment means, he said the time has to be on your side rather than against you to prosper.
While many still plan their movements during breakfast, he has finished personal chores. He is ready to join his peers on village projects or other events arising from unplanned circumstances.
His wife, Ana Naqatima, said living with Koro had always been a humbling experience. They had to commit to the farm between the collective village commitments, and Koro had his lumberjack business on the side.
“His timings are always precise,” she said of her husband.
Breakfast at 7 am. Lunch at noon and dinner has to be ready between seven to eight in the evening,” Mrs Naqatima said.
She says the best she can do is to commit herself wholeheartedly to preparing his meals, to be warm and ready. Clean their home and, sometimes, join him at the farm when they had to be out for the whole day.
Since they married, the village had watched her knowing his lifestyle and wondering how she would cope.
“When you live with someone so precise, everything is predictable,” she said.
