The phone rang one morning. A male voice was on the line. He was laughing to say, “ kumapit sila sa patalim. (holding on a razor‘s edge)”
Sila are the nurses registered as one in their home country, for one reason and another they decided to be here. Sila in reality involve not just one specific nationality as what the caller had in his mind. The truth is in this country, sila includes other nationalities like Chinese, Thai, Fijian, Japanese. Samoan and etc. if that is what he needs to know.
The money involved is quite a big amount and according to many accounts with it was sweat and tears yet they raised it just to be here. Sometime in the past, the Nursing Council requirement was not as high and many were just blessed to come at such a time. If one was lucky enough to have a nurse spouse coming that time and who sponsored the other half; is that enough reason to laugh?
I used to sit in front of my office’ desktop to prepare the slideshow for my lectures. My thoughts flew back and forth as I clicked the windows between the New Zealand website and the topics for my presentation. Where I was could be the best place that a nurse in my country could be. The basic pay was standardized, subsistence allowance, laundry and hazard pay were given each month. Travel expenses were provided not to mention the productivity and loyalty bonus that we get. The office was air conditioned, rank and title was attached to your name to boost the ego for self esteem. The office uniform was honourable with the high stiletto to match with it. Why?
The country is warm and beautiful, the family support is comforting and reassuring. Friends are fun to be with and shopping could be great. Restaurants, malls, pubs, discos, bars they are everywhere. Some do have their own businesses and professions flourishing but everyone you meet them here. What could have gone wrong?
Deep within the minds and hearts of everyone, we master the answer. Even those who are laughing share the same hopes and aspirations even if they want it only for their own selves or families. It is sad to see the same kind of people with the same colour trying to destroy each other’s dream, sad to realize that for every word and action shown everything simply echoes something hidden within.
Even back where I was, I have already pictured what I was about to do. Parker pens I may never have to use, when I will be pulling pads instead. Everyone has our pride and vanities, these weaknesses I was ready to tame, I know where I am going to labour is my aim. When we talk of weaknesses, principle can be one’s strength. There will always be a time when one has to grow and become independent, a time when one needs to prove you can perform a role well. Each one of us has our own obligations in life, surely that is what we are here to accomplish.
The job of a caregiver is truly back breaking. Yet it is rewarding to know that today you have managed to make one lonely elderly smile. So many times I hear the workload is alright. The challenge can be more on your co-staff when discrimination and indifference becomes the issue and you get persecuted for even the most minor deficiencies instead of being assisted to learn better and ease the task. Peculiar to the culture is how we compete and rival within our own group yet as a people we stand strong against our opponent. If just for this I am still proud to be of my race.
If I am an elderly, I will surely be happy to have a doctor, dentist, physiotherapist, pharmacist, medical technologist , nurse and whatever care for me. Although they are not registered as such in this country, when I am down on the floor, chances are in my carer’s head is a medical opinion as well as a medical option to suggest. That is if one can look beyond the skin to see the beauty and feel the warmth of the soul within.
21 May, 2008
20 May, 2008
Crossing the Miles
I have never been an extensive traveller nor were my dreams as high. I felt comfortable where I was for a time until well meaning friends and relatives convinced me to think about migrating somewhere else. As most of us do, the priority destination was the United States. People used to point out how in my home country doctors and other professionals were going into nursing just to be able to go while I as a nurse did not seem to care for what was thought of as a better future.
I started thinking about my NCLEX . If just to have something to start with and give me a push, I took the International English Language Testing System and got the score I needed for my plan. Somehow, my work took me off my NCLEX review for I had to undergo domestic travels to conduct orientations and trainings , monitoring and validations related to my job. Time passed swiftly and before I knew it my English document was about to expire and I felt sorry to realize how the money I spent would just go to waste.
An option was opened to go to New Zealand. The country’s door was opened to nurses through an Aged
Care Education Program. I surfed the net to get an idea of how things are in the country. Glossy as the pictures of the sceneries were and beautifully chosen the words of the writer the promise of a better future hang positively in the air. Things happened as if in a twinkling on an eye … as I looked back I could not imagine how I ever raised the means to fly and landed in another land. As things had happened I was more convinced that in our mortal existence there is an unseen hand that do manage our life.
One of the most apparent change that was felt when I arrived was the cold. It was summer of 2006 when we disembarked all fifteen of us in the group. We were told the weather would be warm but it was cold . There were other peculiarities about the weather we noticed, all four seasons in a day was what they say. There were times when we walked from Pack and Save to our accommodation, we could feel it was hard to take a step forward as the wind zoomed strongly against our legs.
Everyday for twelve weeks, we walked our way to school. ..in the morning our mouth would emit that peculiar smoke we used to see only on the screen of movies shoot in cold locations. Another thing that amazed us was the traffic and the white lanes. When we try to cross the street, all cars simply stopped to let us go. Where we came, drivers usually blast their horns to beat the traffic but not quite in this new place. Although cars here go swiftly past yet we feel safe at every corner with both the green light and the beep to signal our time to cross the other side of the road.
Our training starts at 9:00 a.m. and at home people would go rushing by the sidewalks to work at that hour. Well it was new for us to realize that at such time of the day the sidewalk was rather deserted. At home we lived in cities and they call our place a developing country yet in here there were not too many high rise buildings to see.
It was wonderful to note that the river at the heart of the suburb is simply clear and clean. It is soothing to the heart to see nature taken cared of , appreciated and loved . People young and old we do meet as we walk the streets. The older folks they were rather courteous, cheerful and respectable… it is hard not to return a greeting or a smile as you walk by. The young generations have their own culture too … so many friends were thrown curses and swore at with hatred as if one world is solely for their own.
In summer, when we came the sun did not set till ten o’clock at night but the shops closed early as five. What could possibly be done under the sunlight when where we came the place do not even seem to sleep even at midnight. No man is an island so they say. Loneliness could easily set in with the thoughts of home. The family interactions and the intimacy of loved ones do cause some emptiness and pain when you are out alone in some foreign land.
In an attempt to cope with the daily stresses and pressures, individuals began to show their true colours. When finances ran low survival of the fittest became the game. Crisis can truly be a test and a time of decision making. A time when despite being beaten black and blue the spirit is called on to maintain the grace and its basic hue. Crisis is the best of time to identify who among our friends are real, when there is so much room of heroism and for one to realize who works for fame and gain.
I started thinking about my NCLEX . If just to have something to start with and give me a push, I took the International English Language Testing System and got the score I needed for my plan. Somehow, my work took me off my NCLEX review for I had to undergo domestic travels to conduct orientations and trainings , monitoring and validations related to my job. Time passed swiftly and before I knew it my English document was about to expire and I felt sorry to realize how the money I spent would just go to waste.
An option was opened to go to New Zealand. The country’s door was opened to nurses through an Aged
Care Education Program. I surfed the net to get an idea of how things are in the country. Glossy as the pictures of the sceneries were and beautifully chosen the words of the writer the promise of a better future hang positively in the air. Things happened as if in a twinkling on an eye … as I looked back I could not imagine how I ever raised the means to fly and landed in another land. As things had happened I was more convinced that in our mortal existence there is an unseen hand that do manage our life.
One of the most apparent change that was felt when I arrived was the cold. It was summer of 2006 when we disembarked all fifteen of us in the group. We were told the weather would be warm but it was cold . There were other peculiarities about the weather we noticed, all four seasons in a day was what they say. There were times when we walked from Pack and Save to our accommodation, we could feel it was hard to take a step forward as the wind zoomed strongly against our legs.
Everyday for twelve weeks, we walked our way to school. ..in the morning our mouth would emit that peculiar smoke we used to see only on the screen of movies shoot in cold locations. Another thing that amazed us was the traffic and the white lanes. When we try to cross the street, all cars simply stopped to let us go. Where we came, drivers usually blast their horns to beat the traffic but not quite in this new place. Although cars here go swiftly past yet we feel safe at every corner with both the green light and the beep to signal our time to cross the other side of the road.
Our training starts at 9:00 a.m. and at home people would go rushing by the sidewalks to work at that hour. Well it was new for us to realize that at such time of the day the sidewalk was rather deserted. At home we lived in cities and they call our place a developing country yet in here there were not too many high rise buildings to see.
It was wonderful to note that the river at the heart of the suburb is simply clear and clean. It is soothing to the heart to see nature taken cared of , appreciated and loved . People young and old we do meet as we walk the streets. The older folks they were rather courteous, cheerful and respectable… it is hard not to return a greeting or a smile as you walk by. The young generations have their own culture too … so many friends were thrown curses and swore at with hatred as if one world is solely for their own.
In summer, when we came the sun did not set till ten o’clock at night but the shops closed early as five. What could possibly be done under the sunlight when where we came the place do not even seem to sleep even at midnight. No man is an island so they say. Loneliness could easily set in with the thoughts of home. The family interactions and the intimacy of loved ones do cause some emptiness and pain when you are out alone in some foreign land.
In an attempt to cope with the daily stresses and pressures, individuals began to show their true colours. When finances ran low survival of the fittest became the game. Crisis can truly be a test and a time of decision making. A time when despite being beaten black and blue the spirit is called on to maintain the grace and its basic hue. Crisis is the best of time to identify who among our friends are real, when there is so much room of heroism and for one to realize who works for fame and gain.
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