Stepping Stones

I haven’t been able to think about what is next after this exam, nothing else can be done until this step is completed. Like many families right now, none of this looks like I wish it did. In my dreams I would have all of us here, taking a family adventure through Scotland and showing the kids around all my favourite places while finding new family favourites for us to return to after moving. Instead I am taking strange photos wishing I could show Archie the double decker bus he keeps talking about and knowing they would love the northern shore here. Sean has always wanted to visit Scotland and see his family here and hike around Scotland. Instead I am traveling solo and he is taking his vacation to hold down the fort at home with 4 kids, 2 who are just starting back to school and one toddler who is home all the time. I can tell you the one who is really doing the hard things is not me! I missed Archie’s first day back at school and will be missing Elsie’s last soccer games, Halloween, and Frankie’s 3rd birthday. While this feels exciting and like progress, it also feels very sad. I miss my kids and my husband. I have not been away from my kids this long ever and I haven’t been away from Sean this long since our long distance dating days. The last solo trip I took (other than trips to Canada when we were dating) was to Romania when I was 22. So it has been a bit since I navigated changing planes and trains (vastly easier when you don’t have a toddler in an ergo strapped to you). The stress of trying to remain COVID 19 free while traveling added some extra stressors to this venture and while wearing a mask for 21 hours on planes and trains was not my best life, I am grateful to have arrived here. Every glimpse of Scotland I’ve seen has felt like a privilege, so has the full night of sleep and the quiet day of studying. So whats next? When I complete quarantine here I will take the train to Northamptom England and take my nursing exam (also known as the OSCE) the next morning. Then the next day the train back to London for my morning flight home.

Partially due to COVID 19 and partially due to the massive process it is to move a family of 6 to another country, everything has been happening in agonizingly slow stages. I have had to re-frame it many times to avoid feeling frustrated. The next biggest step is securing my nursing license. The first half of testing I was able to take in the states, the second half has to be taken at a testing center in England. Originally I had planned to fly here for a week, take my test, and maybe explore a little as well as look at housing and neighborhoods in Cambridge. Then COVID 19 caused border shut downs, testing centers were closed, and it felt really uncertain when it would be a possibility to schedule things. Testing centers opened again in October and I was cleared for a November 3rd exam. Instead of a 1 week adventure, a two week quarantine was necessary before testing. I find myself in the incredibly lucky position of knowing a sweet friend in St. Andrews Scotland who offered me a room in her house for two weeks. I wish I was out exploring Scotland, I have always wanted to visit, instead I find myself studying training videos and watching the weather out the window. Here’s to completing next steps and hopping to the next stone.