To Philip re Accomplishment

Submitted by Melissa (United States), Mar 21, 2017 at 14:32

Philip, fair question! I am back in the States now for a visit with my family and friends and most of them have asked me this in one way or another. While I am proud of myself for toughing it out through law school and getting a position in a firm, I never found happiness there. I had money and an impressive title, but that was really it. I didn't care about those things much, and I realized I only became a lawyer to impress my parents and prove myself in a way. The legal field is a tough one with long hours and high expectations. I was working 60+ hours a week, I had developed an alcohol problem at one point (hence why I no longer drink) and I was miserable.

I also noticed that the females in my firm and others I had met truly centered their lives on the job. They suffered divorces, they didn't have good relationships with their children, they were constantly out of the home, came back from maternity leave early, etc. I didn't want that life at all. My mom was a housewife, and she wanted to leave my father for a long time but she wasn't able to because she didn't have an education and couldn't find a job after being out of the workforce for so long. I was always scared that the same would happen to me, so I focused on education, but being a career woman and sacrificing my home life isn't something I am willing to do. Living overseas offers a quality of life that I have come to enjoy. There isn't constant stress about money (at least in my family) and debt, and we are more interested in relationships and enjoying life than getting accolades and professional achievements.

I found this blog by searching something like "moved to Egypt for marriage" to see if there were women nearby where I live from the States. I came across this blog and read some of the stories and felt I should share mine as well.

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