Get Lost in Nature by Celesta Nagel
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Tragedy, Courage and Determination by Tevita Tukia
It was a bright sunny afternoon in Tonga and my brother Sione decided to go to the beach with my cousin for a swim after a long hot sweaty day in the farm. They stepped into the nice clear clean beaches of Tonga and submerge themselves in the nice silky surface of the Pacific Ocean.
Sione who recently graduated from college with a degree in Elementary teaching from the University of the South Pacific was a teacher at the village of Foa. As they continue to swim and submerge themselves in the cool placid surface of the water they decided to move deeper into the Pacific Ocean.
It wasn’t long as they move into the deeper waters. The ocean deep was bluer in color and it looks enjoyable to swim in deeper ocean as their feet are not touching the ocean and cooler that the shallow waters, my cousin started noticing something approaching from a far. Undecided what he’s going to do-he swim back to save his life or help Sione,. Everything was too late as he started yelling to alarmed Sione of the approaching intruder, the white shark, which is common in the Tongan waters, started engulfing Sione and all he sees is his helplessly crying for survival as the water suddenly filled with blood and as he moves side ways creaming for help and fighting for survival as the shark has gotten his left leg and torn it apart.
Frighten and swim for his life, he was be able to get help from the local fisherman’s but only to find Sione body unconsciously floating in a deep pool of blood as his left leg was torn apart and sever loss of blood from the body. It was a life changing experience for Sione as he continue to be in the hospital for another two months , it was apparently clear he will not be teaching and more and the disbelief that good sunny afternoon in Tonga can go bad. But Sione’s love imparting knowledge to kids and his determination reminds him that he can go back and do what he used to do. It wasn’t long that the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Sainst donated wheel chairs to the island for elderly couples and through this donation, Sione was be able to go back and teach. He later married with two kids and some of the kids he teach are graduating from college like him and help the village of Foa. It was through Sione’s determination that he fight all odds and be the man he wanted to be. Great determination.
