FLY MY WINGED CHILD - Through the eyes of a FLYING FIJIAN mum

Fly My Winged Child Through the eyes of a Flying Fijian mum Bula Vinaka, Konichiwa and Hello from Tokyo The Rugby World Cup 2019 is now in full swing. The rugby tournament where thousands or perhaps millions of supporters and rugby enthusiasts have converged into Japan to witness the sport of Rugby play out at its' highest level on the World's biggest stage. Webb Ellis Trophy Players from 16 countries have come to compete for the highly sought after coveted trophy, the Web Ellis Cup. I have now been  here in Japan for several days where I have attended two of our Flying Fijian games, tasted the nations beautiful delicacies and traveled up north by subway trains, Aeroplanes, buses, taxi's and bullet trains. I feel extremely blessed. As a parent of a Flying Fijian   I am counting my blessings for the opportunity that I have to be able to not just travel around Japan but to witness all their pool games thus far as well as  have the opportunity to meet

Fly My Winged Child Through the eyes of a Flying Fijian mum It is just after midnight here in Sapporo and I am finding it very difficult to sleep because of the excitement of Fiji's first game against Australia here at the Rugby World Cup (RWC) 2019. Flying Fijian Backs Tonight we got to witness the Flying Fijian's  jersey presentation which was inspiring, encouraging and highly motivating. I have been fortunate enough to have attended a number of jersey presentations in the past but there was something quite different about tonight's event. I left feeling hopeful and confident about tomorrow's match. The boys were relaxed and there was a real sense of unity among the team. They didn't expect for such a large number of supporters to show up tonight but there were a lot of us which I believe was a pleasant surprise. You could tell how much they appreciated the supporters showing up tonight. Hymns that were sung by our Flying Fijians were not o

Fly My Winged Child Through the eyes of a Flying Fijian mum Konichiwa from Sapporo! Leaving Sydney without my son Milan (the Younger Volavola) was tough because this was something he was looking forward to. Milan has recently landed a new role in the accounting firm he works for and because of this he made the decision to stay back in Australia. He may not be traveling with me but I know he is with us in spirit. Sitting in the plane on my way to Narita via Singapore, I sent a text to Ben to advise that I was on my way. “Yahoo!!” was his reply. I am so looking forward to seeing him and the team. This has been a long time coming – 4 years to be precise. With the ups and downs that life throws at us, we continue to rise. Such is the life of a Flying Fijian . Similarly to our Island brothers from Tonga and Samoa, the Flying Fijians do not have the luxury of first-class travel like many of the other nations do. But regardless of how they got here and where they have

Fly My Winged Child Through the eyes of a Flying Fijian mum It was around about the same time 4 years ago that I was boarding a flight to London heading to see our Flying Fijian Ben Volavola’s debut at the RWC 2015. It was to be his first. Blessed with having family based in London made it that much easier when it came to looking for accommodation. And when we had more family members (yes another cousin from Spain) descend into London, I felt like I was back home in Fiji. It was my first RWC experience and what an experience it was. Fiji were pooled in the same pool as England, Australia, Uruguay and Wales which was dubbed the “pool of death”. The RWC kicked off with the opening match between the hosts the English Rose vs the Flying Fijians at the Twickenham stadium. It was huge. I remember walking in thinking to myself that the many years of getting Ben to his practice sessions, 1:1 kicking sessions where he had me running all over the oval picking up th

Fly My Winged Child Through the eyes of a FLYING FIJIAN mum The Pathway for every  Flying Fijian  will always be different. But I think the common characteristics that they each hold are Self-belief, determination, perseverance and faith. It was 2013, we were 2 years away from the 2015 Rugby World Cup (RWC) to be held in England and rugby fans all over the world were excited. Here in Australia there was so much buzz in the air as to who was going to make the Wallaby squad and no doubt there was much discussion about the makeup of the Flying Fijians. For the Volavola family, many discussions were held between Ben, his brother and I about whether he would work towards trying to make the Wallaby squad or try out for the Flying Fijians. There were friends and coaches in the rugby circles who encouraged Ben to keep working towards a green and gold jersey and there were some who would talk to me directly asking me to encourage Ben to pick the green and gold over the black and

Fly My Winged Child Through the eyes of a Flying Fijian mum His Debut The Super Rugby XV is a rugby competition played between 15 different State and Regional clubs in countries across Argentina, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa. Ben and members of the Waratah backline 2013 Ben debut for the New South Wales Waratahs in 2013 in their game against the Queensland Reds. I was fortunate to have been able to witness this because it was in this match that he also scored his first try. I remember sitting in the stadium with friends and family who had no idea how nervous I was. Prior to the match a cousin of mine and I drove to the hotel to see Ben to wish him good luck. He had caught the cold but was in good spirits. He was finally going to do what he had dreamed of for such a long time and that was to finally play for a Super Rugby team. As I sat in the stadium nervously watching the teams run out on the field, I caught a glimpse of him. He wore t

Fly My Winged Child Through the eyes of a Flying Fijian mum Moments, they are always happening around us and sometimes we don't even notice them. They can be small or grand in scale but what makes a moment a moment is the sheer impact it has on us.   Moments can be fleeting and memorable but whatever it is, a moment is an experience. A moment could be as simple as watching a child take his first steps, a husband changing diapers for the first time or a wife telling her husband she is pregnant for the first time or the 7 th . Whatever it is, there is an element of surprise, a shift of emotion from being subdued to one of elation, panic or shock.   It is an inner experience. The most common moments that are shared are often to do with the Olympic games. These games are mostly associated with special moments or great moments. And it is around these types of moments that I would like to share with you mine. U12 Manly Marlins Rep It is 2003 when Ben m

Fly My Winged Child Through the eyes of a Flying Fijian mum Flying Fijian RWC 2015 It is difficult to try and explain or describe the disappointment and sadness you feel when your child is going through his or her challenges. And in whatever form they come, it can test you to the core. When their hearts break so does yours but you've always got to appear like you've got it together. Not sure if that's you, but it's definitely me. Ben has had his fair share of challenges and disappointments during his junior rugby days, through his years as a Super XV player and as a Flying Fijian, and it has taken a lot of resilience, trusting in God and self-belief to overcome these. To commemorate the win Team manager gets a prize too Ben’s first challenge during his rugby career was when he was 16 years of age playing for Oatley Junior Rugby club. We had moved clubs in 2004 from Seaforth Raiders. The team was 10 days away from playing in the U16 Prem