Coming to America , Episode IV- Come! O Taste and See !!

It was my first job in a corporate body, here in the States, therefore, it felt good! I mean really good, to have job security and guaranteed paycheck, every two weeks. Ha ha! Won’t he do it!  Excuse my manners lol, I don’t think I mentioned the name of my school in my previous blog post.

Here it is!  Georgia Perimeter College now known as Georgia State University Perimeter College. We went from ” Jaguars” to become “Panthers” One of the best and most diverse community colleges in the States, in my opinion, lol!

My boss was kind enough to accommodate my class schedule. I attended lectures in the morning, later in the evening, I  clocked in for work at the library to begin my night shift. At this time, most students were either going home or staying back to study, so the work load on the job  was pretty much slow and, conducive  for my school work.

Life as a working student had its “roller coasters moments” In as much as I was grateful for my job, some days, I’m literally chasing time to meet up a,deadline. The adrenaline rush is real!!

One of such busy days, I stopped by my academic adviser ‘ s office to evaluate my academic performance. Truly, I was excelling in my course work. He revisited my initial career of interest -psychology, and asked me, if I had thought about becoming a Registered Nurse.

Me  ? Become nurse? I was strictly on my fashion and designing journey and hoping that I could someday marry the art and science of “psychology and fashion “ to probably become the next fashion icon, lol!

Ha! See me, see trouble! Dis man wan put sand sand for my garri o!

My academic adviser noticed that I was hesitant and slow to respond to his suggestion.  Heck! yea! As at 2009 in Nigeria, nurses had a bad wrap for being mean and unprofessional, especially in the government-owned hospitals.

To make matters worse, the nursing uniform was either a white top and skirt, or a knee length white gown, matched with a white hair piece, ready to give you injection on your buttocks, with no mercy!-my definition of boring, lol!  All these thoughts, running in my head as my academic adviser continued his sermon, on “becoming a Registered Nurse” ,lol! The last words I heard were:

“one of the biggest regrets in life is not trying at all”

Here is the deal!

I was very comfortable in my fashion skills. I was afraid to try a new career path. What if I failed? I don’t want to be a laughing stock! I was criticizing his suggestions based on my previous experiences and knowledge. I’d never visited any hospital in the States to see what the job description of a Registered nurse looked like. With no health insurance, I stayed away from hospital trips, lol!

Don’t judge me! Kroger and Walmart pharmacy always to the rescue,lol!

True story guys!

The same week that I chatted with my academic adviser, I received a phone call that one of my clients fell ill.  I used to make clothes for her when I was still working in the sewing shop, before the mall shut down. As a sign of kind gesture, I scheduled to pay her a visit during the weekend. All thanks to map quest, I arrived the hospital with little stress.

Wow! The structures  were a beautiful sight to be hold! I kept asking almost every passerby along the way, if this was a hospital or a hotel.  Some of them reassured me that it was a hospital, I was heading towards the right direction while the others, responded  to me with this look that questioned my level of consciousness. As though they really wanted to ask me in pidgin English

You chop craze? which bush you come from? For real my J. J. C no get part 2, lol!

I was blown away by the meticulous services provided by the staff involved in my client’s care. It was my first time seeing nurses dressed in beautiful uniforms also known as scrubs . Everyone greeted me with a smile. Surely! This is heaven! I thought to myself! My sickness will quickly disappear if I was ever admitted to such facility, lol! I began to process what my academic adviser told me that I almost forgot the reason for visiting the hospital.

Can you guess the name of this medical facility?

I left the hospital on a new mission to investigate . It seemed that the world of nursing was saying to me:

“Come! O taste and see!!

No one in my immediate family is a healthcare personnel, therefore, I had no reference point of success when it comes to healthcare. In that moment, Isaiah 41  gave me comfort

“Fear thou not, for I am with thee; be not dismayed, for I am thy God; I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”

I needed a game plan, I needed to bust a move! Can you guess my next move??

…..to be continued!!!!!

this nigerian_chic 💋 💋 💋 💋