APPRECIATION

 

I am under a lot of pressure at work, and it is affecting my mental health. It is the 8th of March, and the weather is still as frosty and cold as January, crushing my expectations that spring is near. I have downgraded my winter clothes to lighter jackets with no gloves, and I am not able to cope with the cold weather when I go out in the mornings. My baby girl started school in the middle of February, and I am having a terrible case of the flu again, after recovering from a chronic cough that lasted three months. On top of the new and difficult work environment, absenteeism has been prominent during the time colleagues were writing the Royal College exams. Not to mention the world leaders have decided to start a new war and bomb each other. With the instability in the Gulf countries, the fuel and grocery prices will go up. Here I am trying to be positive about life. and make a list of the things I am grateful for. 

I am grateful I actually have a job right now. This is the job I got so excited about last year may when I had the interview and broke the news to my parents, and started applying for a work permit, visa, and getting tickets for Ireland.  We are back to basics. We are grateful to have a job and a stable income to put food on the table. The demographic of patients has changed here; they are well taken care of, and I find it very rewarding compared to South Africa, where every day we had to save patients from critical conditions such as severe cardio-respiratory distress, sepsis, or haemorrhage. 

I cannot put a price on the feeling of safety we have staying in Ireland. There is no constant fear of an armed robbery, hijacking, or a gun attack. I often walk to work while on a video call with my mother.  In other countries, phones go missing in public. I remember when I worked in one of the government hospitals in Johannesburg, there was an incident in ED where one of the patients started assaulting a male nurse, and another patient pulled out a gun, to defend the nurse! I love my morning and evening walks to work,  thanks to a safe community. 

We appreciate the change of seasons, and we are eagerly waiting for the beautiful spring and summer to arrive. Hoping to spend more time in nature with friends and Aryana. Most of my career and study difficulties have occurred in winter. I remember when I was in university back home, I had not submitted my research proposal, and I was in crisis before the start of the internship. I was very stressed out, while mom and Cyrus were in South Africa, every morning before going to the university, I would have an episode of crying at the breakfast table. 

I love seafood, and Ireland is a country where we can get a good supply of fish and prawns. I am in love with Salmon. My favourite meal of the week is baked salmon fillets in the oven with a healthy side of vegetables. My daughter is also a great fan of seafood and prawns. I am planning to cook more sophisticated dishes on weekends when I  have time, it is more fun and rewarding than eating out. 

I am happy that my little girl is going to day care. It was weighing on my heart all these months she was at home. hopefully the school will help her pick up more skills and learn to be more vocal. Immigration is hard, but we are slowly settling in and getting used to our new environment. I enjoy the slower pace of life in our small city. There is no hectic traffic or morning rush to day care. My husband and the transport lady take care of the day care drop off and pick up while I focus on getting to work.