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Sunday 29 May 2011

Graduation Day

They say pictures are better than words: So here is it.... 20 May 2011.

I did not think that this celebration day of my Bachelor of Naturopathy was going to be such a special day really, because this is only a pretty simple ceremony after all.
But it turned out to be really very very special, and I truly felt an incredible weight lifting up.

I guess I had been pushing to get to this point for a very long time:
It started in 1970 when I started Medical School in Paris, and went on for 5 years there, being a sweet little med student, not contemplating anything else then than becoming as good a Doctor as she could.
Then I left it all behind when I came to live to Australia, got married and my beautiful daughter was born. I remember the Dean of the Faculty was not very impressed...

Queensland Medical School did not want to give me any credit for my years in Paris, when I contacted them. So I turned my back to them and started a new life:
I kept very busy for nearly 20 years, primarily as a representative of major medical equipment companies. This was extremely interesting, challenging and demanding. And I was still in the field I was comfortable in: Health.

But, funny enough, when I was gathering information for my daughter on possible tertiary education possibilities, I came across this Natural Therapies College, and talked to them.
Next I was starting my massage training part time, and the following year I was a full time student again, focusing on what was an Advanced Diploma in Naturopathy then.
3 years later I was starting my Naturopathic Clinic in Tanah Merah.

The Bachelor only became available then. So no problems I decided, I will do the last year part time.
But this last year took 10 years!!!! Et every year stressing on how much longer it would take..
Between my time in the Clinic and changes in the curriculum over the years, extending the requirements further and further, it felt like this carrot would never be mine....

So how many years of study do I reach now, I am loosing count: I can round it to the equivalent to 9 years full time, but in reality it has been in my life continuously in the last 14 years, after the original 5 in Paris.

So thank you to everybody for listening to me all this years . You have also all helped me in becoming who I am now. I am very fortunate that I have 10 years of practice behind me now, even if the mortar-board was on my head only last week.

So enough with my story now. Next blog will be on a naturopathic insight. What about something useful for the winter?... See you soon.

5 comments:

  1. Dear Francoise! Congratulations on all of your achievements. I feel that I and my family are very fortunate to have found you and we are very pleased with you as our naturopath. Thank for all your help so far and by the way I'm still learning to spell your name and to pronounce it.
    Love
    Johanna Swenson

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  2. Congratulations Francoise and thank you sharing your story of persistence, it is Inspiring.
    With gratitude
    Jenny Bush

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  3. Thank you very to the many who sent me their congratulations in one form or another. This is all part of the story, and it counts very much.
    Merci. Francoise

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  4. Congratulations Francoise on achieving your Bachelors Degree. It's amazing to see what can be achieved when we overcome the resistance. If you can achieve this while running a successful business then anything is possible. You have given me the inspiration to get past the resistance I am experiencing and to complete my own studies. Thank you. Jenny Wooldridge

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