“I would like to dedicate this story to my husband who has crossed mountains and valleys to keep our little family going.

My story starts with me as a young girl looking forward to get admission in the Christian Medical College, Velloreas. I wanted to pursue a career in the medical field. I took my exams, interviews and got selected for the nursing program in CMCH, Vellore. This happened in 2000. Life was never easy as a nursing student .We learned the basics of humanity as we were groomed to become full fledged nurses in the future. Each day was challenging and filled with learning experiences .

I saw everything from smiles on the face of parents seeing their newborns to the heart wrenching cries of people letting go of their beloveds. Nursing taught me how to feel, touch and understand like a patient undergoing treatment. – it taught me empathy.

Soon 4 years of study were over and I became a registered nurse. I was ready to face the world full of challenges. I was sent to Kolhapur to work for a small hospital (50 bedded) as a part of my service obligation to CMCH Vellore. There I learnt what it was to live with a meager salary of Rs 2000 a month. The clients coming in for treatment were poor and couldn’t afford treatment in bigger hospitals.

I learnt to hold their hands, be their yard stick as they walked. I saw happiness and satisfaction in the eyes of my patients. This made me realize, money or fame is not what gives us happiness. It’s the feeling of being cared for, the feeling of knowing there is someone to look up to when things go wrong. That’s all that’s needed to feel satisfied.

All I have with me from working in Kolhapur is the memory of having a friend who was my hospital ayah. She had a sober personality. Simple things mattered to her. We cooked together, ate together, worked together.

Soon I got married in 2006. I got married to a person who I can never ever stop being thankful to. He helped me blossom. I quit bedside nursing in 2006 . Till 2014 I did some teaching.

Meanwhile, I had 2 kids, precious little ones God blessed us with.

In 2014, my husband encouraged me to do Masters in nursing. Since I had lost touch with studies or nursing it wasn’t an easy step for me. But then I was constantly encouraged to take up this route by my mother-in-law. She was the one who told me that it was not late to do my masters.

Eventually I applied for my Masters in the US. I was accepted into the program on Aug 2014. My in-laws were ready to support me financially as I took up the program, but I wondered how my kids would stay without me, my daughter being 1.5 years and my son being 5 years; how would my husband manage the kids alone?

But all of the doubts in my mind were put to rest as I spoke to my husband . He held my hands and said,”You go on and study, I will take care of the kids here”.

My eyes weren’t able to hold back the tears of the pain of separation.

I reached US in Aug 2014, to start my studies. Nevertheless, it was not an easy journey. Lots to study, impending assignments did take a lot of my time and energy. In the meanwhile, my strong support, my husband took up the assignment of managing work and kids back home in India. Everyone I spoke to in the US, kept asking me – how does your husband manage everything by himself?

I used to say just one thing to them,”I know if it was not for him, I would have never ever reached where I am today”.

I could have never done what he did for me. He makes tiffin boxes for my kids every morning, gets them dressed, drops them to school. Takes care of every need of theirs. He has to drive to his office and look for a parking spot else he would have to pay a lot for it. He is forced to skip several of his meetings in the office in case the domestic help takes a leave. He sacrificed a lot for us. Each day I am thankful to God for giving me such a husband. He selflessly does everything in order to help our small family move on.

I graduated in Dec 2015. Now I am waiting for my work permit to come through and soon, God willing, I will get to bring my spouse and my kids to this country. I will get to hug them for a long time. No one can take the time away then – till then I have to wait patiently!”

Submitted By – Grace Elizabeth

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