We came to the States with three suitcases, none of which was filled with money. Coming out of the global financial crisis, we had to pay back all of our business & personal loans, and the leftovers of our savings were not impressive. In the US prices of 2014, we could survive for about three months on a very tight budget, and by very tight, I mean very, very, very tight. With each day, our chances to get back soon to a peaceful Ukraine grew dimmer & dimmer. We started to realize: that this time we had to stay in the US longer than we initially planned.
But at that moment, we still were not really sure if we wanted to call this country our home someday. After prayerful consideration, we decided it would be an ideal opportunity for me to become a … student! Yes, lifelong learning attitude, remember? I was very excited to go study again! My eyes lit up; I was eager to start! But the change of our status to student took … one year! Since both of us were not allowed to work during that time, we had to rely heavily on the help of family, friends & church, and by heavily, I mean: completely!
After our status was changed, I got permission to study & work on my college campus as a student help for up to 20 hours a week for a minimum wage salary, which barely helped us cover the costs of my studies. Meanwhile, my husband found a job in a company that could file all the necessary documents for us to get our Green Cards. We decided to go for it, and in two more years, we became Permanent Residents of the United States. In five years after that, we can become US Citizens.
#immigration #success #donotgiveup #persevere #successmindset
