#10

Monday, May 28-May 30

Its official, I have finished my last day at work! This week absolutely flew by…I guess time flies when you’re having fun can be a very true statement.

Work went well this week and I found it very enjoyable and educational. Monday I got the chance to work with two young men with autism. Shawn, who I spent the most time with, came a long way in the hour and a half I visited with them. It took about 20 minutes to build rapport with him, but once he was accustomed to me we got so much accomplished! This may have been one of my favorite moments of my entire experience! I felt completely capable of creating my own assessment and implementing it on the spot. It was such a refreshing feeling to know that I actually have learned something in school! I went and visited Shawn today and he looked me in the eye when he spoke with me, remembered my name and even used polite manners like we worked on! So rewarding.

The final 3 days in my classroom went amazing. Each of my ‘learners’ wrote me letters about what I did with the program. Some of my favorite quotes from the letters include, "God Bless America, God Bless Jessica!" and "Jessica is from Nebraska and likes happy people." I am truly touched by the impact that they said I have had on the group. They have been beyond accepting and embraced me into their environment even though they are all older than me by quite a few years. My experience turned out so different than I thought it would from day 1 when I was disappointed about not having a pediatric rotation. Being a part of a mental health rotation was an eye-opening and challenging experience that I think has benefited me in more ways than I can state. I feel so blessed to have this experience and to have met all the people I have. The community of Sligo has made me feel at home. I am so flattered that I can go to different areas of Sligo County and see people I have met and they remember my name and make sure that I am enjoying my time.

We made our last visit to the beach last night and indulged in my favorite meal so far. I mean it was pizza, which has been a staple since we have been here, but it had all my favorites on it and enough for lunch today. A few of the girls and I exchanged Irish words we have learned in the past 3 weeks and found ourselves quite entertained. For example, imagine a young lad about 8 years running up to his teacher saying, “teacher I need more rubbers!” What would you think? Honestly…we all died laughing. “Rubbers” is the Irish word for erasers! What were you thinking?!?

I look forward to my next 2 days of pure relaxation and finished up odds and ends, also known as running errands. I have found the most brilliant coffee shop in all of Ireland and quite possibly the World. It is nestled on the corner of Bridge Street (where I work) and only opened the second week I started. It is called ‘Chapters’ and honestly has the only good coffee in this whole country. Ailing is the owner and she is just so lovely! Even the sign outside offers ‘Free Wi-Fi and Free Smiles’ which is very fitting. I have found this to be my new sanctuary for not only good coffee and Wi-Fi (of course) but also a place where I can reflect and have time to myself (which is rare around here). Every time I go in Ailing brings me free chocolates and sometimes brown bread (wheat bread). The best deal you can get is a coffee and any paperback book in the upstairs library for just 4 Euro! I have yet to buy a book, but I can’t get over how brilliant the idea is.  

 Some of the group

 Yvonne

Tonight we were surprised to find that our tea date at Martin and Mary’s was actually a 10-course meal! Oh, did she feed us until our eyeballs and bellies were popping out. Mary made it very clear that we should clean our plates and insisted that we not help with dishes. After having 11 children of her own I guess I can see where it comes from!

Tomorrow we all look forward to a special dinner at Markree Castle and our last night on the town together. We plan on hitting up our favorite local pub, Garavogue, which offers 2 for 1 drinks on Thursday and Sunday. We have failed miserably at seeking out every pub in Sligo, but we have made sure our favorites had good business from us.