The Gladdest of Grads (or "Things Going from Sad to Nurse")

To be clear, very few people have an easy time at university, but I feel Glory's time spent working towards her BScN deserves some context and clarification.

Despite being a smart cookie and hard worker, our youngest has never been particularly academically oriented. Her apprehension during testing meant requesting accommodations during high school, and despite the pandemic demolishing her plans for grad, it also meant no provincial exams that year, which gave her a much better shot at getting into the nursing program at MacEwan.

It is a pretty demanding program that combines rigorous coursework with practical experience right from the first year, which sees the second semester divided between labs taught by experienced nurses and actual experience in clinical or hospital settings.

Glory took to the work side of things right away, but often found the theoretical side challenging, particularly in second year. Courses like anatomy and pathophysiology required massive, massive amounts of rote memorization (an 80 minute lecture could easily contain 75+ PowerPoint slides, all of which had potential exam questions) and frankly, some instructors were not even good humans, let alone quality teachers.

But to her credit, she pushed on, spending many late nights studying, and I remember her coming downstairs with tears of relief streaming down her face, unable to speak, and simply handing me her phone to show me she had received a passing grade in Anatomy.

Statistics was another immense hurdle for Glory and her bestie Brooklyn alike. You cannot memorize your way through this kind of applied mathematics, and it was a struggle that also carried very high stakes, as some of their courses in the very next semester required Stats as a pre-requisite. Worse still, Brooklyn had attempted the course on two prior occasions, and not completing on the third try might require her to withdraw from the program and reapply the following year.

They pushed themselves (and each other) to their limits in their studying, but they likely would not have passed except for the patient tutoring by Fenya's then fiancée (now ex-husband) Bobby. The six weeks prior to their writing the final, he practically lived at our kitchen table (working on his own doctorate), all three of them busy on their laptops. Watching the illumination (satori, if you will) on the girls' expressions after Bobby explained something in a way that not only made more sense to them but resonated intrinsically was a real treat, and I will always be grateful to my former son-in-law for this.

After writing their final Stats exam, Glory and Brook looked at each other, admitted neither one had any idea whatsoever if they had passed or not, then burst into tears. Brooklyn made a point of capturing their woeful expressions in a selfie, truly caught between laughing and crying, and captioned it "Nursing school = torture."

But on the day Bobby and Fenya got married and had their reception in our backyard, the girls shared the news that they had passed, and he leapt out his lawn chair to rush and congratulate them, at least as thrilled as they were.

Following a practicum on the palliative ward at Grey Nuns hospital that featured ups and downs like any workplace does (as well as her first exposure to shiftwork); Glory was confirmed as a graduand and attended the ceremony with her school chums this past Wednesday at the Winspear.

This group of wonderfully random individuals met in just as random a fashion on the very first day of classes, and have stuck together through the past four years. They also took part in a group trip to Mexico in April that I hope will reinforce their friendships for years to come.

On Wednesday though, it was all about reflecting on the hard work and dedication that had taken them through to collecting their degrees, and celebrating the end of schoolwork (but not of learning!).

We took Glory out to Tiki Tiki that evening to celebrate, and then she and Brooklyn got together with many of her classmates at another's home.

Note: only one drink (Zombie w/ flamingo) is hers

The next day though, Brooklyn and her mum dropped by the house to drop off a very special present that might have encapsulated the entire nursing school experience better than anything else:

I am so happy I was upstairs from work having my lunch when they stopped in so I could hear Glory's reaction! (Although she has confessed that seeing her tearstained face every time she opens that cupboard is not necessarily ideal...)

Try as I might, I don't think I can convey in words just how proud I am of this kid. Having been there at the moments of stress and seeing her feeling completely overwhelmed as well as all the smaller triumphs that paved the way for her receiving her degree, Glory has displayed a resolve and determination that I feel vaguely envious of. She has legitimately pushed herself for these past four years, through late nights, wearying nights of studies and coursework punctuated by laughter and tears alike, summer and spring courses and uncertainty about her instructors, her marks and her choice of careers.

But buoyed up by her friends and reinforced by good teams in her practicum placements, Glory has come through and last Wednesday got to cross the stage in front of the chancellor and faculty with her Bachelor of Science (Nursing) degree.

My youngest is now only one exam away from becoming a true Registered Nurse. She has scheduled to write he NCLEX or National Council Licensure Examination in late July and is feverishly studying for it even now).

In the meantime though, for me, this smile says it all (even if the pic is blurry): 

Congratulations, Glorianna! We are all so very proud of your achievement.