My neighbour's daughter just japa'd to Canada and I'm tired of being the aunty who helps everyone

My neighbour's daughter just landed in Toronto last week. The mother called me this morning to ask if I can talk to her about how to survive abroad. I nearly dropped my phone. See ehn, I have helped 14 family members navigate this UK system in the past 10 years. I know the Home Office website better than my own hospital roster.

But this girl didn't even tell me she was applying. She went through some agent in Lagos, paid through the nose, and now she's in Canada with no job lined up and rent due in two weeks. The mother is crying saying 'Mama Bose, please advise her.' My dear, what advice am I supposed to give when she didn't even ask before she jumped? E no easy o. When I was coming to the UK in 2008, I saved for three years, I had a job offer before I landed, I knew exactly what I was getting into.

Now every young person just wants to japa without doing the groundwork. They see the TikTok videos of people living in nice apartments and think it's all smooth. Nobody talks about the loneliness, the cold, the racism, the fact that your degree might not count for anything. God is faithful but God also expects you to use your brain. I told the mother to tell her daughter to join the Nigerian nurses association in Canada and start networking. That's all I can do. Anyway, I don talk my own. Who else is tired of being the unofficial japa consultant for everyone?