by Grace Elizabeth is one of those lucky mums who has got to fulfill her dream of pursuing higher education, thanks to her husband. She is also a mum to two lovely kids. Grace was a nurse by profession and was a teacher too, but had to quit with life choices of marriage and children entering her life.
It was her husband who encouraged her to pursue her dreams further. Last December, this spirited individual has managed to get her masters in nursing in U.S, while her husband has taken care of the kids back home.
She shares with Mums and stories her journey of being a lucky woman and someone who has also got to stay away from family which has been tough for her.
“I have memories of joy and happiness surrounding my childhood, except for one of them. I was born in Kuwait until the Gulf war ravaged the city of Kuwait in 1990. My small heart and mind as a child captured the war memories. It was gruesome and chaotic. I still remember our journey through the deserts of Jordan; camping on those big grounds in tents; food and blankets being dropped by the United Nations Organization. These were the times where I felt the protection of God towards our family. It has been over 25 years, but I can still feel it, as life moves on. The movie Airlift exactly portrays what we went through. After coming from Kuwait, we got settled in Pune. I was blessed by amazing friends and teachers who accepted me the way I was. I remember initially how I could never speak Hindi. My school friends and teachers never gave up on me.
My parents were professionals in Kuwait. My dad worked in the bank and my mom worked as a nurse herself. I have two siblings. My parents supported my interest to do healthcare related studies. My siblings though always thought I should join other domains for my interest in finding out things.
I always had a feeling of hope and service that instigated me to go for healthcare. I believe it could have come from the fact that I was always interested in human biology. Somewhere I felt I was compassionate, and wanted to serve humanity. This thought encouraged me to apply for my Bachelors of Nursing in CMCH, Vellore.
My husband has been my rock support. He just believed in me so much that he agreed to take up the whole duty of taking care of our kids single handedly as I pursued Masters in the US. As I say, a heart of gold with a strength of diamond. He stood for me and wanted to see my dreams come true
As I graduated last December, I keep telling my husband, I received the graduation certificate on his behalf. It was never mine. We did it together
With my masters in nursing education, I look forward to teaching nursing related courses to undergraduate nursing students. It was in Pune (TGINE), where students I taught came up to me saying I ignited a desire to learn in them. I was told that I made a difference in their lives as I always thought teaching was a dialogue and never a monologue.
I am in the US since Aug 2014 and my family continued to remain in Pune. I feel my kids are always with me. I can feel a thread of hope connecting us always. It was never easy to be away from my kids. I do breakdown sometimes.
My son’s name is Obadiah and daughter is Aleeza. I do miss both of them. Especially, I miss watching my daughter grow up in this period of absence. It’s always a joy to deck up my little girl with dashing colour dresses and hair accessories. I know every mother has a dream of watching their kids grow. I believe I too will soon get to be with my kids soon.”
