Unexpected Changes

( Part 33 )

 

Anna’s stay, as always, passed without knowing when. Right after her departure, the children had a party from a Polish school, where Polish celebrities flew in to play a football match with their parents. At the end, you could take a picture with them, get an autograph or chat for a while. It might not have been for everyone, as the celebrities were more from the parents’ generation than the children’s, but it was something. For younger children who were less interested in celebrities 😉, there were bouncy castles and other attractions. There was something for everyone.

 

Autograph from Radoslaw Majdan 😉

 

Holidays different than usual

 

One month to go until the end of school and then the long awaited summer holidays. I will not admit that they were anticipated with me, too, as this year I spent them alone with the kids in Ireland and my husband, working in Bahrain. The important thing was that the kids were looking forward to school being over, so they could have time to play 😉. There wasn’t much to come up with for them for the whole holiday, but I was happy that they were able to organize this time for themselves and that they weren’t bored.

 

Unusual holidays 😉

 

Besides, it turned out that this year not everyone went on holiday and children always had someone to play with, and I had some company. Good that it was only two months, because at the end of the holiday, kids themselves wanted to go back to school. It is hard to believe, but they really did. Well, no wonder, doing the same thing over and over again can get boring for anyone. Maybe if I had let my kids sit on their phones, Xboxes and other amazing inventions of the world, they wouldn’t be so eager to go back to school. I, unfortunately, am a mum who is against letting children sit in front of any equipment just to keep them occupied with something, especially at such a young age. I think they’re not going to miss out on it anyway, but as long as I can have an influence on it, I want to take advantage of it.

 

What a change

 

Since September, some changes appeared in our life routine. My eldest son finished sixth grade and from the new school year has started college. In Ireland, the education system is different than in Poland, primary school is up to 6th grade, after, college from 1st to 5th grade with the fifth year ending with the Leaving Certificate. I dread to think how quickly the years will fly by. The time so far flew by so fast that it’s hard to believe.

 

 

Another change was related to myself. Can you believe that I started work in September 2017? I wouldn’t have thought in my life that since 2007, when I last worked and only for a while; because we needed to get a mortgage for a flat; I would go to work. I hadn’t had the opportunity for so long and now, when I was suddenly alone with four children and a dog, I still went to work. Would you have thought that I would be working at this point in my life? Did it even cross your mind for a second? Do you want to know how it happened? Do you remember when I wrote that I went on a computer course? This job was the consequence of that. I got a letter from the job centre where I was attending the course saying that they had a job for me and I had to come in for an interview. You can guess how stressed I was. Thousands of thoughts swirling around in my head, how am I going to pass the interview, after all I can’t speak English well enough to pass it. Not only was I at home with the kids for ages, but my English did not shine either. In fact, I would be inclined to say that I stammered when I had to. I didn’t develop my English over the years because I prioritized my children and their need to learn Polish. I could say that I went backwards in English rather than forward. For me, the most important thing was that they speak their mother tongue and could always communicate with their families in Poland. That’s why we always speak Polish at home, and that’s the way it’s going to stay, if only because I don’t speak English well enough to communicate freely.

 

Work

 

My workplace

I confess that I don’t know how it happened, but they accepted me. Shock! And for what a position. I didn’t even dream about it, after such a long absence from the job market. It was a part-time job as Administration Assistant Medication Manager at Irish Wheelchair Association. I would also like to mention that I gave them the condition that I could not work any other hours than 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. I had to take my children to school at 8:30 a.m. and pick up my youngest son at 2:00 p.m. The best was that the job was only 5 to 7 minutes by car from home. It couldn’t have been better. At the beginning I was terrified how am I going to cope at this job without English, but as time went by it turned out that I couldn’t have found a better place. My boss was amazing. A very good woman. When she gained confidence in me and, for example, my children were sick, and I had to stay at home with them, she let me take my computer and work from home. She was a bit chaotic, changing priorities now and then, which made things a bit messy, but otherwise I had nothing to complain about. I got along very well with her. You’re probably still wondering how I coped with English? Well. My computer wasn’t very conversational, so I didn’t have to put in much effort. And as much as I needed my boss to tell me what she wanted me to do, I understood. Occasionally she was telling me some stories and patiently explained when my brain couldn’t grasp it 😉. However, you can guess that my English didn’t skyrocket after all. I’ve always been better at writing in English than talking, so with the computer we somehow came to an understanding 😁. We had a great time working together.

 

September was also special in another aspect. At the beginning of the school year in a Polish school, I met a Jesuit father. He played a big role in my life at that time when I was alone in Ireland. He was a huge support to me, too. If it wasn’t for him, it would have been hard at times. But I believe that everything happens for a reason, and all those people who stood in my way at that particular time had a mission to fulfil. And so do I.

 

More photos you can see in the Gallery in the Ireland album.

 

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