Featured in The New to Canada Podcast

When Diala’s plane finally touched down in Toronto she had goosebumps. The last year had been exhausting and exhilarating and she could barely believe she had made it to Canada. She was here alongside her new husband, Yehya, who she had unexpectedly met through this process. A brand new life, a new job and a new husband. The journey had been a whirlwind. So much change would be overwhelming for anyone, let alone a life-long refugee, moving home and country mid-pandemic.

Arriving with just one suitcase of possessions, Diala was ready to establish a brand new life.  This was a remarkable opportunity which would never have happened without Talent Beyond Boundaries, a charity focused on supporting skilled immigration. 

Finding them and then joining their database had ensured she had a new advocate, beyond just her immediate family. There was a local and global team who were supporting her hopes and dreams for opportunity. She shared their details with many, including a colleague at the hospital as he left the building on his last day of work. After the subsequent exchange of phone numbers they became friends, engaged and eventually were married. It had been an added remarkable outcome of this whole adventure.

Diala knows that life with so many challenges can be daunting. Yet, they were so lucky compared to many they had left behind. She feels fortunate that this chance came up for both of them. She reflects on the poverty of refugees forced to live in camps, entire communities who face unknown futures. This really troubles her, “I believe that each human being has the right to have a decent living you know, and to live with dignity, but they don’t have that.”

The warm and welcoming reception they received on arrival in Canada was thrilling for Diala and Yehya. Even with masks and covid restrictions, people had come to greet them and show support.  It was so hard leaving everything familiar behind. The boring monotony of quarantine was stifling but gave them a chance to imagine a life in this new place.  There were understandable moments of sadness, missing their families and all that was familiar from home.

Diala was born in Lebanon to a refugee family. Her grandparents fled there during the 1948 Palestinian exodus. She shares a little of her background in a podcast interview. “As a refugee, technically you are stateless. It limits daily tasks. There are no rights. You can’t vote or buy a house. You can only apply for limited jobs.” This can be tough. "It's important to know a little about your essence. People need an identity and they should never forget their origin."

This is tricky when life itself is a challenge and "right now Lebanon is undergoing an economical, financial crisis. There is a great change in the Lebanese currency and it's very hard on the Palestinian refugees and on the Lebanese."

Diala is affectionate about the only home she has known. "I used to live in Beirut, the capital of Lebanon. It's quite well known with its traditional food. We have this amazing salad called tabbouleh. It has tomato, parsley, some lemon, it's quite good. We have this stuffed meat, it's called kebab. It's quite amazing, you have to taste it. And I think you know hummus, it's well known, a traditional dish. 

Beside the food we have such an amazing artistic and natural views...Lebanon is quite well known for its writers and academic professors. We have amazing touristic views, mountains and seas and all of these museums. In spite of the economic crisis happening right now, Lebanon is a beautiful place." She is proud to have graduated as a nurse and worked in a busy Beirut hospital. She enjoyed exploring and dreamed of being able to travel and hoped that her nursing skills would be transferable and allow for a chance to work abroad. 

Talent Beyond Boundaries is tireless in matching skilled displaced people with global employment vacancies. They pick up all the threads and work relentlessly to weave them into place. Moves like Diala’s involve government departments, visa applications, exemptions, interview practice for candidates, counselling around culture and expectations, non-stop communication and copious quantities of digital  paper work. “They were incredible,” Diala explains, “this program helped me to establish a new life.”

Diala and Yehya are infinitely busy in their new jobs at VHA Home HealthCare in Toronto. They were granted work visas and permission to travel as front-line essential workers to Canada and are working as personal support workers serving some of Toronto’s most vulnerable. She acknowledged that they had a lot to learn due to the different health care systems of each country, but they have had such wonderful support.

“We are never alone,” she says with happiness. She is upbeat and enthused about life, even with the steep learning curve. She feels the arms of both TBB and VHA wrapped around them. The head of TBB Canada even wrote her a personal letter, which meant so much to her. She treasures all the advice but mostly that she must remember to ‘take one step at a time.’

“What I love about Toronto is it’s a multi-cultural city.” Currently the pair are dealing with covid restrictions and finding their feet at work. When there is more time and freedom, Diala is hopeful that the cultural offerings of the city will meet her love of theatre and museums and they are both looking forward to exploring different cuisines.

She follows a little personal plan for her own survival and has shared her wisdom for anyone who is moving to an unfamiliar destination, “because things are not that easy.”

Diala’s Guide:

• Try not to complain

• Take one step at a time

• Be patient

• Work hard => Do your best

This seems like wise advice for us all.

The past 12 months have been tough for everyone. The isolation, the fear and the inability to travel have caused pain and confusion for regular people, unused to such disruption in their lives. As we reflect on the impact of change in our own lives during these unusual times, hopefully we can learn more empathy for refugees and others who face uncertainty on a daily basis.