I moved to Ireland in 2012 from New Hampshire, where I was born.
I did not pay for my son's birth.
I don't worry about a shooting when I drop him off.
I've lived in Ireland for most of my life, even though I was born in New Hampshire. I originally came to County Galway to stay for a few months, but after I met my husband, I never left.
I have a 5-year-old child. I'm thankful for my adopted country's public healthcare, gun safety, and money.
Socialized healthcare was something I could only dream about in the US, but here it's a reality. I paid nothing out of pocket for my care. My friends in the US were hit with thousands of dollars in medical bills after giving birth. If I still lived in my home country, I wouldn't have been able to afford a contraceptive plan for my unborn child.
I received most of my care from midwives. In the maternity ward, where my baby and I spent his first days of life, I felt a sense of solidarity from the other mothers, as well as the experienced team that cared for us.
House calls are standard in Ireland. A nurse came to my home multiple times after my child's birth, offering everything from physicals for my son to checking my perineal stitches and helping me breastfeeding while I lay in my own bed.
The universal child benefit is offered to the parents of any Irish child regardless of income. My child has a card that will allow him to see our doctor for free. I don't have to worry about the cost of a doctor's visit when he has a mild case of the flu.
Some things are not rosy. There is a crucifix on the wall of the public hospital where I gave birth.
Those things make me uneasy as a nonbeliever. Secular schools are limited to more urban areas.
My child was one year old when abortion was legalized. My American friends felt bad for me because I was pregnant in abackward country. The tables have now changed.
Every day when I bring my child to school, I think about that.
I teach a class. I heard a bang one day as I graded alone. If I were in the US, I would have locked my door and hid under my desk, because I assumed it was from construction.
In Ireland, there have been no fatal school shootings. I don't worry when I drop my kid off at school.
I was told from a young age that the US was the best place to live. I don't want my family to go back to their hometown. There is nothing more important than that.
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