Saturday, December 22, 2012
언니의 영주권 오디세이
Friday, December 21, 2012
Sister's green card Odyssey
"Sister, don’t forget your green card."
My sister, her husband, my husband, and I drove north. We wanted to visit the Thousand Islands and cross into Canada to test out my sister and brother-in-law’s brand-new green cards. After touring the Thousand Islands, we approached the border to Canada. While we were lingering around the checkpoint, we were stopped by border officers. A bit nervous, we showed them the green cards. To our relief, they just smiled and said, “Enjoy your trip.” At that moment, all the years of waiting and struggling to get the green card flashed through our minds.
My sister got her green card through her daughter, my niece. Unlike me, my niece is tall for a woman. Our father once said, “I’m short, and your niece is tall, so it might be hard for you and her to get married in Korea. It’s better for her to go abroad.” That was one of the small reasons both of us left Korea.
My mother had suffered a lot during the Korean War. She always warned that when war breaks out, daughters are especially vulnerable. She believed daughters should be well-educated and encouraged studying abroad. My father, too, believed that a person should see the world to truly grow up. So, they tried to fix their children’s weaknesses by sending them overseas.
My niece went to college in Korea and then came to New York for further studies. Studying was important, but she also needed to get married — which wasn’t easy in New York. She was tall and good-looking, but perhaps because she lacked charm, she hadn’t dated anyone. She was like “a sack of barley just sitting in a room,” as the Korean saying goes.
I asked around and tried to set her up with someone. But even when introduced to men, she showed no interest. It was frustrating. One big reason was that her parents didn’t live in the U.S., which made things harder for her in the dating world. So, my sister and brother-in-law came to the U.S. on tourist visas.
The third man she met wasn’t really her type, but we pushed her to keep seeing him. On the man’s side, he was very eager. After a few more dates, it seemed like she started to warm up to him. There were concerns. My niece had grown up in Korea, and her fiancé had moved to the U.S. when he was a child, so they had different cultural backgrounds. But he was hardworking, and she had no real flaws, so they got married and now live happily with a son and daughter.
While helping my niece get married, my sister and her husband became undocumented. I had to push my niece to get her U.S. citizenship quickly so she could sponsor her parents for green cards. Thankfully, her husband acted fast, and they finally got their green cards.
When I look back, it all feels like it happened so smoothly — but in reality, it was a long, difficult journey. If even one thing had gone wrong, my sister might have remained undocumented, and my niece could’ve still been sitting alone in her room like a barley sack. Just thinking about it gives me chills.