Home Interviews Exclusive Interview: Mrs Universe Africa finalist speaks on self improvement,giving and putting yourself first…

Exclusive Interview: Mrs Universe Africa finalist speaks on self improvement,giving and putting yourself first…

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Exclusive Interview: Mrs Universe Africa finalist speaks on self improvement,giving and putting yourself first…

We had the privilege of having Dercia Josue (Mrs. Universe Africa finalist) shares her truth, and talk about what she has learnt along her journey. One of the things which stood out is “Nobody owes you anything”.The delectable Mrs. Josue recently sat down for an interview with our EU-Bureau Chief  Albena A. Jones. They discussed everything from beauty therapy to her project called Smiles & Hope for Africa and lots more.

A-CHOICES: Tell us about yourself.

DERCIA: Entrepreneur, Lecturer, and Beauty Therapist. A wife and mother of two girls, owner and founding member of Beauty by Dercia a mobile beauty Spa that focuses on restoring women’s confidence. Born and bred in Mozambique, Dercia Josue like many other girls grow up running in the streets of Maputo with big dreams of the day representing her country through a beauty competition. She grew up with her grandmother who instilled in her the gift of giving back.

A-CHOICES: How did you get involved in Mrs. Universe’s beauty pageant?

DERCIA: I grew up with a dream of one day representing my country somewhere in the diaspora… And last year I came across the Mrs. Universe Africa pageant which I entered, a life-changing, and women empowerment program, that led me to represent Africa in Women of the Universe.

A-CHOICES: How has the pageant impacted your life?

DERCIA: Well I thought being a wife, a mother and having a career was everything. After the kids all I could care about was the kids and and my partner, there was no room to care for myself. The pageant came to remind me that I once had dreams and those dreams are valid, it reminded me to take care of myself, and prioritize my needs before others… Which I am incredibly grateful for.

A-CHOICES: Besides being a beauty queen, what else do you do?

DERCIA: I am Beauty Therapist, I own a mobile beauty Spa that focuses on restoring women’s confidence. Being a mother of two, I remember not having time to do my nails or even have a foot rub or massage, therefore after completing my studies I realized that there was a gap in the industry and I took the opportunity to help women like me that for various reasons couldn’t leave the house, by bringing the services to them.I am also a distributor of alkali water. 

A-CHOICES: What other activities fulfill your life?

DERCIA: I am a philanthropist I grew up with my grandmother in a house full of children, and I later learnt that they were not related, and from that moment on I understood the power of sharing and giving which is a legacy for my children and the generations to come. In 2020 I embarked on a project called Smiles & Hope for Africa, where I focus on keeping a girl child at school by distributing sanitary pads and toiletries to keep their dignity. I believe that the future of the African continent depends on education therefore I distribute school materials to ensure that children in disadvantaged communities have access to education. 

I also knit blankets and distribute them to the homeless in the wintertime, and once a month I cook and distribute food for the homeless. During the pandemic, I was able to help families with food parcels. All of the activities give me great pleasure, there’s no better feeling than to see the face of someone receiving a place of food, that smile is priceless. This work has been done in South Africa, Mozambique, and Malawi. 

A-CHOICES: How do you feel as a global representative of Africa?

DERCIA: Very excited but at the same time nervous, as I carry the weight of not only a country but the entire continent on my shoulders, it was a big responsibility that I carry with pride and respect. I was excited about meeting people from different countries, cultures, and languages, the interaction was amazing, and have learned a lot.

A-CHOICES: How do you achieve balance in your personal life, work and charity activities?

DERCIA: It’s difficult to achieve balance but the most important thing is your support system. I have a very supportive partner that believes in me and supports my visions and ideas, he is behind me 100% and that’s the key. When it is work time I focus on work and when it is family time I give my 100% I even switch my phone off if I have to. Once a month I do my charity drives in which I get my daughters involved as I teach them the importance of sharing and giving back. 

A-CHOICES:What are your plans going forward? 

DERCIA:I would like to continue reaching out to other African countries through my organization to promote the importance of education and continue creating awareness among women about domestic violence and mental health issues, which we experience on daily basis, and often most of us don’t even realize. 

A-CHOICES: How did you overcome the challenges throughout the journey?

DERCIA: Coming from Mozambique, and growing up with so many difficulties and insecurities, I had to teach myself to be very positive, and to always see the good no matter how bad the situation is. I believe that we are on this earth for a reason, and we all have a purpose to fulfill. And sometimes our plans will fail so that God’s purpose can prevail. So these beliefs are the ones that have carried me throughout the difficult and challenging times. 

A-CHOICES: You said a quote the other day it still stuck with me a bit. You said ‘nobody owes you anything?

DERCIA: Absolutely! The day I came across that post, it was a life changer. It says, ‘no one owes you anything.’ It actually came to me at a point in my life where I think I was depressed, and anxious about everything. I just had these two little babies. I had my kids very close, they were both little I was breastfeeding and, it was quite difficult. And then the fact that I’m in a foreign country, I don’t have family that I can call and say, please come and help me with this one. I remember I used to wake up every morning and tell myself that no one owes me anything. And at the end of the day again I used to sit before I go to bed and tell myself that no one owes me anything. I had to start implementing that at home. Because I know having children being married,it wasn’t easy. Sometimes I used to expect my husband to do so many things for me that he didn’t feel that he needed to do. So I had to wake up every day and tell myself it’s okay he doesn’t owe me to do this. If he does it, it’s great, but if he doesn’t do it, it’s also okay. We have so many expectations from people; we’re expecting them to do things for us or to behave in a certain way. It’s our responsibility to make ourselves happy, I can’t expect that you’d come into my life and make me happy. I remember after all of that, I said to myself, listen I need to learn to communicate better, I need to learn to know my values and my worth and people must know who I am, and what I am to be able to you know to understand me.

A-CHOICES: Let’s flip it slightly, where does the ability to ask for help come in? Because I think it’s quite important that you should also have the courage sometimes to ask for help if help is required.

DERCIA: Absolutely, we think that we are these superheroes that we can do it all but we can’t do it all. So yes, we need to ask for help. People are there for so many reasons. And that’s where you are able to create that connection and be able to build with others because, at the end of the day, I like to believe that we are all a community, we are all one so we must be able to help one another. That’s what will make the world a better place. And that’s why there are people in different fields of life so that I can say I need this person to do this for me. I need that person to do that for me because people have different gifts and skills and once you know your own lane of work or gift or whatever in life, I know that if I’m in a situation like this; I’ll need Kailyn to help me.

A-CHOICES: What’s your message to the readers?

DERCIA: Don’t lose Hope, your dreams are valid. You can do and be anything you want, as long as you have focus and determination.

Author: Albena Jones

EU-Bureau Chief

Sofia, Bulgaria

albenajones@yahoo.co.uk