Well?! Where do I begin? I cannot even begin to describe the feeling of enthusiasm that came over me after I had recently hosted an online information session regarding helping our children by providing bible study at home.

As I write this blog, I have just completed a memory verse booklet in the itaukei language for children. I am super excited to share this fantastic news. After just twenty-four hours of writing this exciting book for children, it now awaits editing. (Praying God sends someone soon).

I have three little children whose first language is English, and my desire of writing this memory verse book is that it may also help them to learn my mother tongue. At home, their Dad and I try our best to communicate with them in Fijian to help them have an understanding our mother tongue. Yes, we might be living far away from home, but this does not mean we do not teach our children to learn their language.

Admittedly on a lot of occasions we do get asked if English is our second language, and although this might be for us parents it may not be the same for our children. I still very much love to engage in the itaukei language with my children. During one of my recent visit to Fiji in 2019, I vividly remember telling my mother, that I will purchase a itaukei language bible to help encourage me and build my confidence in scripture reading and also in prayer. I can not highlight why having this personal bible has helped me over the years.

I am glad that my children will get to read their memory verse booklet and in the same way, learn about their parent’s mother tongue. I believe it will be cool to not just read the itaukei language but to also speak it and this might just be the icing on the cake for my children.

Growing up back home in Fiji, although I understood the language I did not speak it confidently. Until the age of ten whilst attending an itaukei school in Nadi called “Namaka Public School” it was then when I was first introduced to taking language classes. I thoroughly enjoyed it and found it helpful. Having to read in my mother tongue was certainly one of the best feelings of finally placing a tick to learning how to read in the itaukei language.

I vividly remember my language teacher whose name was Mrs Vosawale -she was a soft spoken lady whose articulation of the itaukei- language motivated me to learn my mother tongue and encouraged me to speak it fluently. I am certain alot of itaukei children who came through language classes provided in schools have benefited greatly from the teachers who have taught us in primary schools.

I hope that writing this little “Memory Verse Booklet will encourage our children to memorise God’s Word and learn more about God too. I am adamant that many of our itaukei children also residing overseas may benefit from this too. I struggle to find books that are bible related to my children in our language and so this has motivated me to invest in the spiritual development of itaukei children who live outside of Fiji too.

While I am grateful for this opportunity, I Praise God for clarity to be able to work on such a project that is close to my heart. I also thank everyone who has helped and contributed to me seeing where the need is to write a book for our next generation of children. I hope the book will be helpful for family “lotu time” personal reading and also road trip days.

📚 Book Release Date will be available soon