Unexpected Turn of Events

I am gonna call this divine intervention.

So I moved to Cairo, Egypt fall 2022. It was gonna be an amazing school year. I was on the continent of Africa. I was living in an Arab country where I know what to expect. The school was amazing. I was out of the classroom. Elise was settling in nicely. She made some friends and she genuinely liked the school.

Then God said…This was not my plan for you.

In October a financial crisis hit Egypt which meant it hit my wallet. I am talking cost of living went up to the point I was struggling like I was in America. Um not what I signed up for. So I cut back unnecessary expenses. We were gonna be okay no worries.

God said….you weren’t listening were you….I said this is not my plan for you.

Work started playing with my money. In other words financial crisis came knocking at my source of income. They legit with a straight face looked at us and said the money runs out in May. We are gonna try to honor your contracts but if the Egyptian pound keeps going up we won’t be able to afford it. Then we get hit with your contracts are next school year and you are taking a 10% pay cut. But don’t worry.

DON’T WORRY!!!!! ARE YOU SERIOUS RIGHT NOW!!!!

I spent 7 days agonizing over what to do next. The plan was stay here for four years. Save some money. Get a house. Climb out of debt. Not worry about money. Yet here I am worry about money and what to do next.

Being a single parent making all these decision by yourself sucks. Like if anything goes wrong it all falls on you. You don’t get to bounce ideas off of anyone or have someone in your corner telling you WE got this. Just me. ALONE!

So I hit the ground running and start applying to new schools.

I wanted to stay but God started yelling at this point. Elise starts pointing all the things wrong with the country. We both agree the school is good but not the country.
We go on a trip to Abu Dhabi of all places and she is beside herself comparing.

WORD FROM THE WISE: the moment you start comparing your current life to an old life or what could be in a new life, it’s time to move on.
When you are in another country and people who obey road rules is exciting for you, it’s time to leave. Let’s not discuss the liter or clean air. She was excited about people driving in their lanes and not rushing. Me I was happy for fresh air.

When we got to the airport to leave and head back to Egypt I instantly got sad…for a number of seasons but I was sad to return to Egypt.
I have struggled to adjust and feel comfortable and home. It feels like a long visit.
This is that country that is good to visit but not live. Some people have found this a great place to live and work or even retire to.
Personally I don’t like the country. I stay indoors a lot because going out is stressful. Between the dust, trash and impatience of others around me I can’t deal.

Now my school I love. The people are amazing and supportive and I wish I could stay but I rather bounce now while I can and give Elise three years at one school instead of two.

So I am back to the drawing board making my list of what I need from a school AND country. I didn’t factor the country in when making my choice. I was thinking solely about the school. I didn’t make bad choice with the school but I fumbled the ball on the country.

I don’t regret it but I did learn from it.

I decided not to return for several reasons
1. I currently am not able to save
2. I honestly do not like the county Egypt as a whole
3. Things will get worse before it gets better
4. I am not growing as a professional.
There are other reasons but those are my top four. So now I am back on the hunt looking for a job. I don’t know what the future holds for me but I am trusting the process.

On to my next adventure.

Where will Carmen San Diego end up next?