My mother gave up her job in order for me to have a better life. She gave up her life in Macedonia so we can move to New York and I can have a better education. On March 18, 2014 my mom got on a plane to New York. Although she was very nervous and scared she kept reminding herself why she was moving and starting a new life. One object that she brought with her is a frame with four pictures of our family. The frame had the word ‘famILY’ with black letters on the bottom. The three letters that are capitalized stand for ‘I Love You’. The pictures were divided with black squares and protected by the glass. The back of the frame was all black and had a metal hook to put it on a wall. I asked my mom why she chose the frame and she answered, “This frame means a lot to me because it holds our memories. It’s just a part of who I am.” Every immigrant brings something with them from their home. As my mom said, every immigrant will always have a part of their country in themselves. My mom was the first woman in our family to move to another country. No matter how hard it was for her she persevered and continued with the journey. It is important for Americans to hear about immigrants’ stories because then they will understand the struggles they go through. 

– Mina Mihajlova

Relationship:  Child of im/migrant Child of im/migrant