Moving from ones hometown to another country is so difficult. People have different feelings and thoughts for each stage. Actually, they are excited to see and experience new things, but at the same time, they feel sad about missing their family and friends. In short, it is hard to move without any experience, but people will learn many things like I did as a new immigrant. I was driving when my husband called me and said, We have to move to the USA because my job application to the United Nations was accepted. I thought that it could be my last chance to drive on those streets.
I had a lot of questions like how I could handle this situation and what would happen in the future. We were lucky because my husband received a new job offer from the United Nations three years ago. Then we decided to move from Tehran to New York City. We had gotten married one year before the job offer. We lived in an apartment with brand new furniture, so we had to sell the furniture and break our lease. We had two different feelings when we sold our furniture. We were really sad because all of it was new. However, we were excited because we knew that we would replace it as soon as possible.
It was the first time that I had to leave my parents and sisters for a long time. We used to see each other every day. I was worried about my parents because they are old. I have three sisters who are older than me and very kind and got married a decade ago. Also I have two nephews and two nieces who are close to me. I hardly ever had a day without spending time with at least one of them. I was worried about missing my family, and I thought that it would be too hard to go back to my country to visit them. At night on January 19, 2011, my husband and I had our luggage packed.
We had dinner at my in-laws’ place. My parents also came there and we went to the airport together. They were trying to keep us calm by giving us hope and energy. They told us about opportunities and chances we would have to improve our lives. We gave each other big hugs. We could not stop crying when we were saying goodbye to each other. When we boarded the plane, we already missed them. We had tickets for business class seats. During the flight I was sleeping for a long time, but my husband watched a few movies. There were lots of food and drinks served on the plane.
Our flight was more than 10 hours long. We arrived at JFK Airport in New York City around 5 PM. It looked like an old airport with old carpet and dark paintings. We took a cab from the airport to the Roosevelt Hotel. This was not like any other city that I had visited in Europe. I was shocked when I saw the city skyline while driving toward Manhattan. There were people from different countries and of different colors on the crowded streets below tall buildings. It is now more than three years that we have moved to New York and I have learned a lot during this time.
I have learned not only about the new country and new groups of people with different cultures, but also about myself. I know how I can improve my capability to learn new skills in the short time. I have examined my flexibility in accepting new ways of living. My husband and I have become more independent as individuals. I have started to attend college once again, which gives me confidence. I now realize that I have a chance to start again, and this time, I am going to study my favorite major which is fashion design.
Furthermore, though being far from my family is so hard, however going to college has a lot advantages because I have been with numbers of new friends who help me to handle the new station. We usually go the gym together and also sometimes go a restaurant. In fact, I have never been really alone here because my friends are always around me and make me happy. Also my husband is my best friend who spends most of his free time with me, so I have not been really depress or alone since I moved here.
Moreover, during the past three years, we have gone back to my country and visited our family, which made us happy. Indeed, living alone without family members, managing my life and making progress in my life are important things that I had never learned before. In addition, I learnt that saving time and money for both of us are very important. I did not realize that in my country because I had a supporter there, but we are alone here and have to improve our life without any help and make our future the best.
