Chapter 3 : Chasing the dream!

It was the third and final academic session and I was moving to the pure sciences class, it was called SS1B. I can faintly remember that day, but I must have been dressed in my neatly ironed school uniform, my new backpack hung on my shoulders and moving my old, oversized and rusty desk across the hallway. The first day of resumption after the holidays were usually unnecessarily awkward, it’s almost as if we forgot how to interact with each other, very cringe worthy “Hi, how was your hols” resounded in the hallways.

 

I struggled a bit initially with Mathematics, Chemistry, Physics and Further Mathematics. However, when I put in the work Mathematics became easier, when our Physics and Chemistry teachers were changed, I understood the content better and for Further Mathematics let’s not even go there ha-ha. 

 

I barely studied hard in secondary school, and when I did my intent was to pass and not to learn, so I don’t remember much of how I got through senior secondary school. In the final year of high school, my peers and I started chatting about university choices and study options. I envied the ones who were certain they were moving abroad to further their studies; they were mostly from privileged homes and some of them already had older siblings outside the country. They were a few others who were certain they were going to study in Nigeria as well, they were happy and constantly talked about how they would meet up. However, for me it was different.

 

If you read my feature on “Excelling Abroad” you would  know my strong desire to leave Nigeria played a huge role in the career choices I made. If you have not read my Excelling Abroad feature, please read it ha-ha, check them out on Instagram @excellingabroad. Anyways, let me share a little bit about my desire to move abroad with you.

 

My mom’s job gave her the privilege to travel around a lot when I was younger, lol I often envied her cause I really wanted to travel with her, but I couldn’t. I envied my childhood friends even more cause their parents were able to afford annual holidays abroad and mine weren’t. 

 

In my primary school, we were often asked to write essays about our holidays and, I would get so mad cause my holiday was mostly spent at the village. But do you know the interesting part?  I would lie in my essay, yes honey I would lie, I would write about visiting Paris, New York and London. I would write about the nice food, the snow, white people  and the nice hotel we lodged in… #pathetic

 

Now that you have a background to my story, you will realize it was my lifelong dream to leave Nigeria. Infact, it was a do or die affair! My Dad was initially very resistant to the idea, he would always say “None of my children will get their first degree abroad” but after much persuasion, tears, fighting and PRAYERS he begrudgingly succumbed. 

 

At age 14, I was in my final year of high school, my parents applied for an admission into the Zaporozhye State Medical University, Ukraine. Initially, the school was a bit hesitant about the admission, but my Dad sent them an email stating, that I was a “gifted” child, and I was up to the task. I had a family friend who was in his 4^th or 5^th year of medical school at the time, so my Dad knew someone who was not only older but reliable enough to help look after me. Infact, majority of the admission and registration process was handled by this family friend of mine. His name is Junior, and we are still very much in contact with each other, fun fact we met in Germany last winter.

 

Anyways this chapter is getting too long, see you next week for Chapter 4.

 

Love always, 

Your favorite unemployed immigrant,

Kuku