The first place I would pick to move to is the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Everyone forgets about this part of Michigan, half of the time it isn’t on the weather maps on the news. I think it would still be hard because I would have to pick up my life and transfer it to another world. At this point I understand that I would have to give up the luxuries I love so much. I would keep my phone but I cannot take my entire bedroom, my car, or my school with me. I know a lot of my family would stay put. They would suffer through it because they wouldn’t believe it until it was actually happening. My mother’s side of the family is very old fashioned and will not leave their ground because they have already been here so long and have worked so hard.…
In my early childhood, my parents moved numerous times back and forth between the Untied States and Iran. Eventually, my family ended up settling in North Houston, where my father bought a traditional two-story home in a typical gated community. Throughout the years, the house preserved many struggles, and witnessed many successes between my family and I. However, not only did our home observe our experiences, but it also embraced our culture. Throughout my life, my home has had a revolution of its own; transforming from a dreadful and dull place to a home that I now look proudly upon. However, what I truly value in my home is the fact that it acts as a safe haven for my Persian culture, something that is as delicate and as priceless as my…
It all started when we left from the hotel around five o’clock, hoping to get to the CN Tower on time. We were on vacation in Toronto in mid July, we had just arrived here a day ago from Niagara Falls. When we left we would have never imagined that this would be one of the longest walks some of us have taken. Pleasantly, we left for the CN Tower, which we thought couldn’t be a great amount of distance from our hotel. We were wrong!…
If you have ever been bullied, you know where I am coming from when I say that it is something that no one should ever go through. Unfortunately, I have gone through it before and I am glad to have fought through it. I can clearly remember the time when I used to get bullied. My family and I had just moved to Canada a few months ago and I wasn't able to speak English very well at the time. I was so excited to learn everything there was to know about Canada, especially now that I knew that everyone didn’t live in igloos. Before coming to Canada I was told by a friend in India that everyone lived in igloos, of course being six at the time I believed her without questioning it. I was also very excited to see snow for the first time because,…
Let me start off with my mother's journey to America. It was 1985 when her parents decided it was time for a fresh start. It was very difficult to come to America legally, so they made their journey by traveling to other countries. They left Cuba and traveled to Spain where my grandfather found a job as a farmer. They lived in Spain for almost 2 years before they gathered enough resources to travel to Mexico. The journey from Mexico to the USA was very easy for them because they had a family member who knew their way around. They struggled for many years in America but soon became legal citizens. My mother later on went to college and completed her bachelor's degree in accounting from the University of Miami. My grandparents purchased the…
Growing up in a diverse city, the culture around me has always been different. Every person that I see always has a different type of belief than me. I’m a 17 year old Muslim student who lives in Southeast Texas. My father is from the Middle East, and my mother is from Western Europe. My parents migrated as refugees from Croatia to Houston in 1995 due to the ongoing war in Yugoslavia. After they’ve migrated they’ve lived in peace here ever since. However that has changed a lot since 9/11, one of the biggest terrorist attacks in history to ever happen in the United States. Now everyone who originates from the Middle East has been looked at as an abomination, and how we're judged for everything that we believe in. It just happens to be that I was born in the time of all of this monstrosity.…
Leaving your country is always a difficult decision, and whoever has experienced it understands the sacrifice it entails. When I left Poland at 18, I thought I was going to be in paradise, but to my disappointment it was far from that. I had to learn a new language and work hard to provide for myself. What kept me motivated was the hope for a better future and an independent life.…
America, land of the free and home of the brave, a country strengthened with rights, equality, and justice. For Americans it’s just a regular country, with regular rules and laws, nothing special about it. Although, to immigrants it’s a country to reinterpret their lives, a better life, a life where they’re free to pursue their happiness and follow their dreams. Even though America is a great country, adjusting to a new culture isn’t easy. It took patience, support, understanding, and passion in order for me to balance two different cultures.…
As an Immigrant, there were many challenges I faced whether it's related to language or understanding the culture. My family moved to United States of America when I was in 6th grade. I was always told by my parents that building a successful career is very important. This idea of building a successful career never stuck in my mind until the junior year of high school when I all sudden all the teachers and counselors started talking about going to college build a career in a field that you were interested in and also important to you.…
“Life is a marathon and you're still at the store buying your running shoes." I was sitting in class in ninth grade zoning out when my global history teacher approached and told me that. Those words hit me hard, and for the first time I felt shame. I was never the brightest student in my family, always stuck in the shadow of my overachieving sister. I didn’t take school seriously. I figured there was no point in pursing an education if I was going to join my father in his food business.…
Denise Chong is a Canadian-born economist who worked for Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau in the 1970s. In her book The Concubine's Children (1994), she told how she rediscovered the courageous and tragic story of what her Chinese forebears had done so that she would be born and grow up Canadian.…
Winter is the last season in a year among the four. It is like a immaculate bride who has a beautiful white dress on her. But to me, winter just like a vicious witch who put magic on me and made me had a bad start in USA. My family immigrated during the winter and it brought changes in my life and my personality. It is a sign of starting new. In this new place, I have enjoyed a certain level of comfort like making new friends and seeing new things. But, every day, I still had to grapple with language difficulties, cultural gaps, and day-to-day life issues. Especially about associating with people, social aspect became one of the most challenging thing I have to conquer and it was a torturous memories. Being an immigrant teaches me deeply…
Imagine being seven and in a foreign country seeing all types of new things. This is what I experienced when I went to Yemen in 2007. It was a world different from my own, but little did I know it would change my life. Seeing things from a different perspective really does change your view on the world. Learning to understand that not everyone sees things the same way you do can be difficult sometimes, but definitely not impossible.…
When I came from Africa in 2007, I was really excited. To me coming to America was like going to heaven. It was all I wanted, after all I could leave my violent country and finally come to the land of the free and the home of the brave. No matter how you put it the expectation for this country around the world is overwhelming. As for me coming to the United State was part of my everyday dreams. I remember my uncle my used to tell me, “Musa the statue of is capable of sitting down”, and due to the fact that I was just a kid I believe every word he said.…
Well, let me start off with my name, Miranda Lahi. I am originally from Kosovo. My family and I moved to America when I was about 3 years old. We were sponsored by Hope Reformed Church as refugees of the Kosovo – Serbian war that was happening at the time. I do not remember much during the move. America has technically been my only home; however, I do visit often. I have lived in Grand Rapids since 1999. My family started off in a little home in the inner city of Grand Rapids and then we moved to Kentwood. I attended East Kentwood High School.…
