Ameri-Can
My sister finally became a citizen. When she answered the last citizenship question, the INS clerk commented,
“I wish all Americans knew as much about our country as you do.”
My sister called me proudly, “Do you know what the word ‘American’ means?”
To my embarrassment, I didn’t.
Irina explained, “Think about it: ‘ameri – CAN’. It means, I CAN do anything now!” It took me a while to understand what made my sister so ecstatic – the freedom of choice and plenty of opportunities that immigrants get when they become Americans.
“I wish all Americans knew as much about our country as you do.”
My sister called me proudly, “Do you know what the word ‘American’ means?”
To my embarrassment, I didn’t.
Irina explained, “Think about it: ‘ameri – CAN’. It means, I CAN do anything now!” It took me a while to understand what made my sister so ecstatic – the freedom of choice and plenty of opportunities that immigrants get when they become Americans.
Unfortunately, not every American makes full use of it. I met lots of young and older Americans who didn’t believe that if they only try, they can achieve almost anything. If we women and men from other countries can get our second Master’s degrees, get highly paid jobs, then why do so many Americans choose the easy way? If immigrants CAN, Americans CAN do anything even sooner and faster!
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