August 25, 1974, 43 years ago today, I arrived in Green Bay, Wisconsin, to attend
university there. I was 18 years old.
A year prior to that, my mother, stepfather,
and I had left Sri Lanka. We went to Malaysia,
first, to visit family (my stepfather's cousin lived there) and friends,
and stayed there for several weeks. Then, we flew to Hong Kong to
visit more family (one of my stepfather's sisters and her children, and
one of his nieces from a different sister). Then, we went to Taiwan to
visit another of my stepfather's sisters and her family, and yet another
of his nieces who was the sister of the niece in Hong Kong). While we
were in Taiwan, my mother was offered a position at one of the
universities there to teach English for a term. So we settled down in
Taipei for a few months.
After my
mother's contract ended, we went back to Hong Kong. My mother would
teach English there for the next 4 years (my mother had teaching certificates from Britain and Hong Kong was still a British colony at the time). While we were there, I was offered the
opportunity to attend university in Wisconsin and a tuition waiver
scholarship, so I accepted the offer. Well, actually, my stepfather said we'll discuss it and my mother immediately said, "She's going" and that was that! The decision had been made; there was nothing to discuss!
I had exactly two weeks to prepare
for my trip, which included being able to show we had US$2,000 in a
checking account as collateral before the visa would be granted. We didn't have that much of money at the time (we were not allowed to bring out any money from Sri Lanka, at the time) and there was no time to get a loan! My mother took her jewellery in a paper bag and showed it to the visa officer, who issued the visa without a word! Later, my mother would pawn her jewellery to raise the funds that were needed; when my stepfather's sister found out, she gave my mother her children's college money to redeem the jewellery, with the understanding that my mother will pay her back in monthly installments. I had one week after getting the visa to book a flight (I couldn't buy a
ticket until I had the visa), and get myself ready! I also needed to bring
another $2,000 with me to pay for the deposit on housing, registration
fees, and various other expenses. The fact that we had very little
money at the time was an added challenge.
But,
my mother was determined that I would go to the US to attend university. We managed to obtain the funds we needed and I was outfitted with
adequate clothing, other essentials, and a brand
new, portable, manual typewriter. My stepfather's sister gave me some warm clothing, an alarm clock, and two one dollar bills should I need to buy something at the airport, and a dime for a phone call. The Cashiers check for $2,000 was
obtained and my mother put it in a plastic bag which she sewed to the
inside of my blouse so I wouldn't lose it and no one could steal it!
And,
on August 24, 1974, I boarded a plane to come to the US. It was the
first time I had ever flown anywhere on my own. From Hong Kong to South
Korea, where we found out that my travel agent hadn't booked me on the
connecting flight! I was taken aside to be searched thoroughly and all I
could think of was not making the connecting flight because that would
mess up all the other connecting flights! But, I was finally allowed on
the connecting flight which took me to Honolulu, which was my port of
entry. The customs people there gave me a hard time because I had some
chocolates and a couple of other food items with me. I remember telling
them it was to keep me fed until I was able to buy groceries at the
other end.
Then,
from Honolulu to Los Angeles. Where I had to find my way from the
international airport to the domestic flights terminal. Which was in
another building. And I had no idea where to go. I found an airlines
counter, but there was no one at the counter. As I stood there,
wondering what to do, a gentleman approached me. I had seen him before,
in the plane, with a lady and a child who I assumed were his wife and
baby; so, when he asked me if I needed help, I said yes. He
led me out of the terminal, through a dark parking lot, to the other
terminal where there were airline counters with people working behind them!
Looking back, I marvel at how trusting I was to follow a stranger like that!
Then,
it was a wait of several hours until my next flight. I had eaten lunch
on the plane, but now it was evening. But I only had the cashiers
check for the university and the two one dollar bills and the dime my
aunt had given me, and I wasn't going to spend them. I ate the crackers
I had with me and waited. My next flight was from Los Angeles to
Chicago. I boarded the plane sometime around 11:00 p.m. - too late for
them to serve dinner on the plane. I arrived at O'Hare Airport at 5:00
a.m. - too early for them to serve breakfast on the plane! There was a
3-hour wait at O'Hare and then, I boarded a plane to Milwaukee and, from
Milwaukee, an even smaller plane (there were, I think, some 6 or 8
seats on the plane!) to Green Bay!
My
stepfather had cabled the university with my flight information, asking
someone to meet me at the airport, but they hadn't got the cable and
so, no one met me at the airport. Half of my luggage, too, was
missing! One suitcase had made it on the plane with me, but the second
suitcase, with my new typewriter and several other items, was missing! So, I filled out the
missing luggage claim forms (the airlines eventually located my suitcase and forwarded it to me, but it had been broken into and items, including my typewriter, were missing) and used the dime I had to call the
university. Within the hour, someone came to the airport to pick me up
and take me to the campus, to register me, and get me to my student apartment
(they didn't have dorms at this particular campus, at the time; they had
contracted with a private company to provide student housing, which
consisted of apartments). Eventually, someone suggested lunch, and I
had my first hamburger at the cafeteria. In the afternoon, I was taken
to the bank to set up an account, so I could cash that cashier's check,
then, to the grocery store, and back to the apartment. None of my roommates
were there, yet, so I was on my own. I remember cooking some hot dogs
for dinner and not even being able to eat them because I was so tired
and jet-lagged!
The
next day, I was asked to come in for some placement tests. What
tests? No one told me anything about tests! LOL. I was to be tested
in English, math, science, and social studies. I was never very good at
math, so I didn't do too well on that and was placed in Intermediate
Algebra. Social studies was only a little better, as it was mostly
about American history, and I knew some, but not a lot. I did better in
Science - enough to get 6 college credits for it! And I did really
well in English (although they didn't give college credits for that),
scoring the highest of all the incoming freshmen, that fall semester,
much to the surprise of the campus administration! How could a foreign
student score better on English than anyone else? Well, I had grown up
in a former British Crown Colony, English is one of the three official
languages there; my parents were British educated, and I was bi-lingual
in English and my own language. Of course, I had to relearn how to
spell and pronounce certain words and learn to say cookies instead of
biscuits and so forth. But I managed to surprise everyone with how well I spoke English.
My
stepfather and mother immigrated a couple of years after that. They
found Wisconsin winters to be too cold, so they moved to Florida. I
joined them there, after I had finished my studies, then, we drove
across the country to California. I went back to Wisconsin for my
graduate studies, but came back to California, afterwards, and here I've
stayed. I can't imagine settling down elsewhere, but I know I'll be
able to, if I need to.
43 years have passed since I arrived in this country! At the end of this month, it will be 44 years since I left Sri Lanka.
Today, I went to the office. My gardener friend was tidying up the garden when I came home. I felt too tired to do much in the evening, other than watch some TV and exchange some messages with family in Texas. Apparently they are not in the direct path of the hurricane, but are anticipating flooding. My friend R called me and we had a nice chat.
Today, I am grateful for:
- Being offered a scholarship to attend university
- My mother's willingness to let me go and make it happen
- My stepfather's sister and family doing what they could to help
- The confidence of youth which enabled me to venture out on my own
- All the blessings of the past 40+ years!
How was your day? What are some of the special anniversaries of your life?
