I remember shopping for warm clothes in the tropical paradise pearl as our island is decoratively known. The night that we left I remember looking at all my belongings in the closet and wishing we were allowed more than 50 pounds each. I remember how sad my dad and mum looked when they kissed us good bye at the airport. There will be no more “king coconuts” and “string hoppers”. We were thoughtfully quiet throughout the nearly 24 hour journey full of stops and transits. As our minds wondered back memory lane our hearts ached with worries about what awaited us.
Our motherland is by no means going through the best of her times. War bound and wounded, she strives to give us plenty from her soils and seas. There were days when my husband kissed me good bye before work and I wondered whether I would ever see him again that day. Life was not a bed of roses, nor a fairytale. Nevertheless, our lives were filled with family occasions, dinner at every good restaurant in town, holidays in the salubrious hills and heaps of fun and laughter.
We arrived here, when fall was bidding good bye. I soon realized USA was very different from what we had anticipated. We blended almost immediately into the American lifestyle. Yes, we did miss the folks back home and the wonderful Sri Lankan cuisine but then you understand that life has another agenda - a better life for your children.
Our daughter entered the world on a cold winter night. It was the happiest moment of our lives. Everyday that followed was like a new star in the sky. She brought laughter and peace into our home and hearts – being everything we can ask for and more. She is the wonder of our lives. In fact Jannah is our life now!
To me it was truly a new beginning. I thought, being Muslim in America will be difficult and the Hijab (or head scarf) would make people fathom me differently. I was wrong. There were some difficult moments like when I got my instruction permit which was a rollercoaster ride. The H4 dependent visa was unfamiliar to many, so I had plenty of ‘proving’ to do. A driving school that I registered for left me hanging because I had no SSN but my family never let me give up. I did prove that I was a legal temporary resident of this country and deserve the privilege of driving an automobile. When I finally got my permit, it was much more than a sense of elated liberation. It was victory.
It was an inspiring difference to have people greet you with a warm smile everywhere you went. At the grocery stores people were not reluctant to admire our baby and shower us with compliments. It made us forget that we were from the other side of the world. It was as though we had been here forever. Watching the children play together at the park and library not regarding hue or color was heartwarming. Sometimes we felt lonely. Sometimes gloom filled the air. Nevertheless, everyday grew a little better because we knew the warmth of the people could melt away the crystal snow. Their smiles erased our tears. Their closeness chased away our deepest fears.
Living on our own was a challenge – a notable change from the support of extended families back home. Living in a strange land without family and not many friends was harder. You wake up and look outside your window with mixed feelings. It really isn’t your home but it is too. The dark moments of reality add heaviness to the heart. Just as teardrops form, there walks by a person, cheerfully greeting you with a beautiful smile. An American at his best in spreading happiness.
Thank you, America for making my day!
We will see and learn many things during our stay in this land of freedom and opportunity. We will also give back, from the Asian culture and traditions together making a better world.
To me it was truly a new beginning. I thought, being Muslim in America will be difficult and the Hijab (or head scarf) would make people fathom me differently. I was wrong. There were some difficult moments like when I got my instruction permit which was a rollercoaster ride. The H4 dependent visa was unfamiliar to many, so I had plenty of ‘proving’ to do. A driving school that I registered for left me hanging because I had no SSN but my family never let me give up. I did prove that I was a legal temporary resident of this country and deserve the privilege of driving an automobile. When I finally got my permit, it was much more than a sense of elated liberation. It was victory.
It was an inspiring difference to have people greet you with a warm smile everywhere you went. At the grocery stores people were not reluctant to admire our baby and shower us with compliments. It made us forget that we were from the other side of the world. It was as though we had been here forever. Watching the children play together at the park and library not regarding hue or color was heartwarming. Sometimes we felt lonely. Sometimes gloom filled the air. Nevertheless, everyday grew a little better because we knew the warmth of the people could melt away the crystal snow. Their smiles erased our tears. Their closeness chased away our deepest fears.
Living on our own was a challenge – a notable change from the support of extended families back home. Living in a strange land without family and not many friends was harder. You wake up and look outside your window with mixed feelings. It really isn’t your home but it is too. The dark moments of reality add heaviness to the heart. Just as teardrops form, there walks by a person, cheerfully greeting you with a beautiful smile. An American at his best in spreading happiness.
Thank you, America for making my day!
We will see and learn many things during our stay in this land of freedom and opportunity. We will also give back, from the Asian culture and traditions together making a better world.
Published in the Jan 2009 issue of Wisconsin Woman Magazine
3 comments:
this is saturated with optimism. i do agree that the good outweighs the bad most of the time (depending where you are i suppose), but I couldn't help feeling that maybe you are being willfully biased in embossing the positive side of the life of a migrant and surpressing the sader - if not darker - experiences.
not that i don't admire your positive outlook on the whole experience, but perhaps the richness of the whole experience is as much due to harshness as it is for its sweeter moments?
I do agree! There were many dark moments... But I have learned that looking only at the odds of a picture never make it even... I have learned to smile and let go...
You are never comfortable in any other land other than yours!
But honestly... they could have made it a lot harder for us but they didn't and we are happy and grateful for that!
I just got done reading Aashika Sulaiman’s feature in the January 2009 edition of Wisconsin Woman. I was touched by the author’s narrative and really connected with her tale, coming to the Midwest from strange lands myself. (Okay, Maine, but to a “Coastee” the Midwest is nearly a foreign country.) Thanks for featuring Aashika’s thoughts – they certainly made me think twice about how I treat others around me, especially during this time of year. I promise you and Aashika that I will keep a few of my best “Midwest smiles” prepped for a day of hectic travel back East tomorrow. Hopefully I can make someone else’s day as nice as Aashika’s made mine by reminding me that yes, there is good here in the good ol’ USA and it’s the people who live here that make it so wonderful. It’s so easy to forget to smell the roses, thanks for wafting the bloom under my nose!
Warm regards this holiday season,
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