I really enjoyed the Irish emigration stories. As an immigrant myself, it's really cool to learn about others' experiences. Emigration is basically leaving one's home country to settle in a completely different one, in our cases: the United States! The Irish fled their country because of famine and hopes for a better life. My family and I left Ecuador for a hopes of a better life as well! When I think about the Irish and their journey to the United States, I can't picture myself being strong enough (mentally or physically) for that. While the Irish crossed the ocean in overcrowded ships, at times without seeing any daylight, my family and I hopped on a plane and were in New York in six hours. You can say the trip here wasn't as bad, but the assimilation, or better yet, the making of our salad, was just as hard. Getting used city streets crowded with diverse people was took a while! Another thing that hasn't changed is the competition for jobs. My parents, like the Irish and all immigrants, had a hard time finding jobs, even though they spoke English. The United States was, and still is, filled with immigrants looking for jobs to maintain their families.
I'm not entirely sure how complicated immigration laws and processes were back then, but now they're ridiculous. After an eleven year waiting list, my family and I could finally call ourselves American! Like the Irish, my family and I fell in love with the United States, but never forget where we're from. Like the end of the reading says... at night, while in bed, there is always a little voice calling us back...
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