I cried again yesterday, but this time it was that release of overwhelming emotions of relief, achievement and gratitude, i made it at last, i have crossed to the finish line of my Masters degree in Public Health.
Graduation photo shoot with Toga
Few years ago, i made the decision to be financially independent and take my self through post graduate studies. I had a perfect plan set up that would finance my Tuition and bills. In fact, i had a plan A,B and C. With all the plans i had, nothing could go wrong, right? Atleast i convinced my self.
I was a fresh graduate from Nursing with no working experience or savings whatsover. Going home to startbmy career as a nurse did not seem as perfect idea as nurses are highly under paid in Tanzania. I knew i needed this advanced degree in order to make it in the medical field back home, and unlike Nursing, a degree in Public Health would put me at a more advantagious position both at home and abroad.
I come from an ok family, we dont struggle to have 3 meals on the table, but basically manage from pocket to mouth. With my mother being the sole provider, i wanted to take this burden off her. After all, they had tried theor best to take me through School , up untill my Nursing degree. It was time for the to focus on my siblings and other issues at home. I was going to manage by my own.
I began off the pursuit of this degree in November 2014, ideally i was to be done by march 2016, but things never go as planned. My main plan A got shaky right from the beginning, it was truly a test. Well, it did not destabilize me so much, i still pushed on.,
Plan B, which was also my overall support system eventually seized to work half way though my program. With plan A shaking and B not functioning, i had to skip a few semesters of school to raise money and catch up on bills.
Me in A Filipiniana , i think i looked great. Still on graduation photoshoot.
In the Philippines , foreign students are not allowed to engage in any profitable employment, getting a job to boost finances was out of the equation. I actually secured a job once, but could not keep up because of lack of working permit. At that point in time, i had noo idea of the endless opportunities the Internet has to offer. I did not know that one can work remotely from wherever they are as long as they have good internet and a laptop, damn i wish i knew.
As a lady in dire need, many temptations arise, and as desperation arises, one is prone to give in , just to get an extra buck. But that will be a story for another day. (When i get the courage to speak about it).
With all the happenings (i did no go into deep details) , school had to be pushed forward to two more years. There were times that i fell into depression, with atrocious thoughts of ending my life,(Yes it was that bad). Especially when i logged in to social media and read about other peoples success, I felt like a failure. I allowed my self to cry, but at the end of the day, dusted my self, killed the negative thoughts and continued to push forward. I did not give up
To cut the long story short, i never thought i'd see my graduation day come to pass.
After paying quite a huge amount for my Research just two weeks ago, i was not ready for any extra expenses. I thought i was done, atleast for now.
Just for me to receive a text message that i was to pay a certain amount of money in order to graduate. To make it worse, i was to pay that amount the following day as it was already the deadline.
I did not have that amount on hand, and i was already thinking i will miss my graduation ceremony. The One day i have looked forward too for four years. For those who dont know, in the Philippines, you pay for everything. Even for Toilet paper in a public Toilet.
I convinced my self that its okay to miss the ceremony, as long as i will be getting my certificate at the end of the day.
I was told that i still have to pay 80% of that amount weather i will be attending the ceremony or not and i told my self if i still have to pay even if i will not attend then there is no need for me not to attend.
Thank God, i had accumulated an amount here on steemit that was equivalent to what i had to pay for graduation. Even though i was trying to save that amount to something tangible to pay off with. i was okay to sacrifice it and start a fresh in order for me to experience that Feel of achievement marching at my graduation. Its something i have toiled too hard for.
So for the success of this event , i owe my gratitude to steemit family for the unwavering support. Especially to @surpasinggoogle for his continued support in helping us all make something out of this amazing platform. I was able to march at my graduation because of steemit. It was a steemit powered event. Here are some photos.
Thank you for reading lovely people. See you again on my next post.
Wow! Congratulations girl 😍🍻
Many thanx dear.
wow....congratulations mam....
Thank you
Well Congratulatinos to you mam.
Thank youu.
Congratulations! Don't stop moving forward @purpletanzanite.
Thank u so much. Forward ever, backwards never.
Wow, this is quite a touching story and I'm glad it ended well for you.
In life obstacles will come, they always do, but it's how we react to this problems; our ability to hang on while we try to surmount them is what makes us champions.
Congrats on your graduation. Here's wishing you all the best.
Perfectly,said.. Thank u very much @paigegirl.. Be blessed .
oh you look super good in that filipiniana dear... i salute you for your courage and persistence.. God bless!
All hard work paid off! it was all worth it! I am glad that steemit was a medium for you to march for graduation!
Thank u soo much maam. Its always a pleasure reading from u and thank u for the support. God bless.
you always write something worth reading and am learning alot from it...you are welcome!
Congratulations darling, so proud of you!
OMG. I am so proud of you for everything. Even though you went through trials, what matters is that you emerged victorious. You are glowing and look so beautiful. I wish you all the best.
Jean, you are Gem of a lady, thank you so so much for love and encouragement . Your gesture left me speechless. Thank you, God bless you real good for me.
You are welcome and your story touched me. I related so much with it because I am also applying for masters abroad and I am just getting rejection letters. However, I know that where there is a will there is a way. Thanks for the encouragement and congrats again. Cheers!
wow..congratulations..i admire your fighting spirit and how you overcome the challenges that come your way..
Thank u, thank u very much po.
Congratulations, @purpletanzanite! I felt that your hard work has been paid off. It's really worth sharing! I'm moved with this achievement and it made me reassess my situation. Maybe I should pursue a masters degree soon. Congrats again!
Go for it, and go for Gold kim.. Totally worthy. Thank u very much for your encouraging comment.. Appreciate it much. Thank u.
congratulations once again Maggie
Thank u sharon. Please keep steeming., dont lose hope. People make it on this platform.
Congratulations. I am happy for you and hope to tell a story like yours, one day
amen dear , may it be as you wish. thank you very much.
kumusta purpletanzanite! :) CONGRATS! what an awesome day! yay!
im following u and upvoted now.
Hi @chinito... Thank u very much. Really appreciate your support.
Wow!!! Congratulations!!! :) We are very happy to see your success. :) More successes to come! :) Expect the unexpected. :)
Thank you so much sir for rejoicing with me. Cheers to a brighter future.
Cheers! :) :) And by the way, nice meeting you.. Have a nice day. :)
I cry too as emotions can be big. Upvoted. Good work. Love your smile. You have beautiful friends, too.
Wow!!! Congratulations. We'll be checking your blog it seems such a wonderful blog.
Hopefully we'll meet too someday. :)
Congrats again.
Thank u @maddie. . hope to see you around more.
Congrats mam. I followed you . I am so proud hehehe. Hope soon I will graduate m engineering course. I was so pressured and challenging to encounter in college stage/life.
You sure will.. Keep on keeping on. And eventually things will fall into place. If finances are an issue, steemit is one of the answers. Looking forward to you testimony in the near future.
Thank you and more blessings.
Congratulations Mam @purpletanzanite
You look gorgeous.
@snowhite, much appreciated. Thank u thank u thank u.
Congrats Girl. Life is tough and you proved to the world you are way tougher. 🍻
I barely survived but pushed through at the end.. Life is tough indeed, we have to proove tougher.. Thank u so much po.
wow, congrats maam!
Thank u , very much.
Congratulations! This post has been upvoted by the communal account, @steemph.cebu by purpletanzanite being run at Teenvestors Cebu (Road to Financial Freedom Channel). This service is exclusive to Steemians following the Steemph.cebu trail at Steemauto. Thank you for following Steemph.cebu curation trail!
Don't forget to join Steem PH Discord Server, our Discord Server for Philippines.
That's what steemit does, making people achieve their dreams, a big congratulations to you, you're a shinning star
Yaaasss, steemit makes life waay better... Thank u , thank u, thank u.
Beautiful photo.
Thanks
congrats ma'am @purpletanzanite! 🎊🎉
thank you very much po.
congratulations for a job well done maam
Thank u maam
Congrats ate
More blessings
Thank u po, and amen. God bless us all.
congratulations on graduation
Thank u soo much @viraldrome..
🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈
CONGRATULATIONS!
Let's party! 😊
In the Philippines you pay everything IF you are in big cities but not in some provinces. 😊
Foreigners are allowed to work in the Philippines as long as you get Employment permit/visa.
Yes i am aware.. I have many friends working. But as long as you are under a student visa, you are not required to engage in any profitable employment and one cannot have 2 types of visas at a go... Say student and working, hence my statement.
Life is always easier in the provinces ey... Lucky people.
Thank you so very much.
How about after graduation? On-the-Job Training? I came from aviation, the company I worked with was giving small allowances to OJT's and hire them if their performance is ok and passed licensure exam. I don't know in medical field. And even if you can work here salary is quite small that's why many Filipinos work abroad. Applying for jobs in Dubai is easier I guess compare to other countries. 😊
Being on OJT means u are still on student visa.. Still,no pay. In the medical field on most times, you are the one to pay the hospital you will practise at.
I have heard great things about Dubai and employment. I am intrigued to try it out.
Oh gosh that's very difficult I wish you just took FLYING or any aero courses. 😅
Yes, many Filipinos go to Dubai and there are many Filipino Steemians are currently working in UAE @steemph.uae
Best of luck...
Thank you.
Congratulations! Everything comes in order in His time. Good luck to your new endeavor, surely you can help your fellow countrymen a lot. Thank you for studying in our country. By the way you look awesome! ^^
You could not have said it any better, everything comes in his perfect timing indeed. Thank you ,thank you, thank you.
congratulation. Great work. grettings from Venezuela,South America
Hello @yokondap, thank u very much. Greetings from Philippines, Asia. 💚
you are welcome.
Woowww
Hi @bukidnonboy ,thank you and thanks for passing by.
Wow congratulations ma'am more blessings await you definitely! Shine on
Amen, thank u so very much. Wishing you plenty blessings too.
so many congratulations and best wishes for your future.
Thank you
You got a 6.93% upvote from @postpromoter courtesy of @purpletanzanite!
Want to promote your posts too? Check out the Steem Bot Tracker website for more info. If you would like to support the development of @postpromoter and the bot tracker please vote for @yabapmatt for witness!
congratulation
Thank u
Congratulations on graduating! It’s such an amazing feeling to complete your studies. Now on to even bigger and better things!
Bigger and better sounds just right. Thank u @mazzle for passing by, good to see u on my post.. Stay amazing. !
Congratulations ma'am @purpletanzanite you made it... I'm happy for you.
@sharatots... Thank you very much be blessed.
Your always welcome my friend.
Congratulations! To see your beautiful smile after the struggles you've gone through and put up with including paying toilet paper (lol!), it is heart warming. You will be one of those success stories we might be reading in facebook too if ever I am there again :) It's great that you have found steemit and helped you in your studies. Please, keep inspiring and succeeding. God bless!