10th Anniversary of Living in America

This past April 17th was my 10th anniversary of living in the United States. I celebrated by buying an expensive bottle of Scotch - a 16 year old Lagavulin. I'm not sure what scotch has to do with America but I enjoy it (I'm enjoying it now!) and it's a nice treat for myself to celebrate my integration into my adoptive country. I've been an American citizen for just over 2 years now and I'm proud to be an American.

10 years ago on April 17th, 1997 my long term girlfriend and I had agreed to call it quits. It was long overdue and we had agreed 6 months previous that if our relationship would not progress then we would just go our separate ways. When I got a job with Sun in California we understood that she would not be coming along. It was the dot com boom and Silicon Valley was eager to hire as many engineers from all over the world to build the information economy. Sun took care of the work visa, relocation and organized the move. We had an apartment together and I left most of our shared possessions with her. The movers came that day and had packed my meager possessions: 2 bikes, some tools, a computer, a stereo, a home made plywood desk and a whole lot of books, records and CDs. I was an easy move for them. No car, no house, no wife and no life.

That evening I left Vancouver, British Columbia to fly to San Francisco, California. I used to fly a lot at my old job and I managed to get myself upgraded to business class. This was great since I could drink heavily and use the lounge to take care of some business - like faxing a copy of my work visa to the moving company so they can transport my possessions over the border.

I got on the plane and immediately ordered another drink. I remember staring out the window of the plane and seeing the lights of Vancouver below me with the mountains in the background. As we crossed Point Roberts into the United States I remember the feelings welling up inside me and I wanted to cry. I'm leaving my adoptive country. The country where I was educated, where I got my values, friends, family and great experiences. My one regret was that I never became a Canadian Citizen in 25 years of living in Canada.

Looking back 10 years I'm impressed with how integrated I have become in America. I met my wife, bought a house, became a permanent resident and a citizen. We are raising a beautiful little girl in our little paradise on the central coast of California. I have the means to raise my family and pursue my passions. I'm living the American dream. Life is good.

Despite some of the cynicism one of the most important lessons of America is that it really is the land of opportunity. If you are smart and work hard then you can make a good life for yourself here. America is the most open, democratic society in the world. The opportunities are boundless if you want to pursue them.

This is my home now. I love America!