The Journey of Life: A Young Immigrant in America

Hilina  0:01  

Hi, my name is Hilina Yifredew and I’ll be interviewing my friend who’s an immigrant, who I met about four years ago at an international event through mutual friends. And I’ll let her introduce herself now. 

 

Naomi  0:18  

Hi, my name is Naomi Sirak I am 20 years old.

 

Hilina  0:22  

And Naomi, can you tell us your place of birth?

 

Naomi  0:27  

I was born in Ethiopia, Addis Ababa.

 

Hilina  0:31  

Okay. And why did you leave your country to come to the US?

 

Naomi  0:39  

 I left because my parents thought it was a good idea for us, for me and my sister to have a better education, So they decided it was best to move here. 

 

Hilina 0:55  

Okay, that’s true.

 

Hilina  0:57  

What were your feelings when you left Ethiopia?

 

Naomi  1:03  

 I was kind of nervous. I didn’t know what to expect. It was, it was really nerve wracking because I had to leave a lot of family behind. And I had a lot of friends there too so I had to leave them behind so that was really difficult. Yeah.

 

Hilina  1:32  

I can imagine that being difficult for you. And how old were you when you left Ethiopia?

 

Naomi 1:39  

I was 15.

 

Hilina 1:43  

So what grade did you start school here in America? 

 

Naomi 1:48  

I started 10th grade here.

 

Hilina  1:54  

And did you leave any family members behind in Ethiopia, whether it be siblings or other relatives?

 

Naomi  2:02  

Yes, I had a lot of uncles and aunts and I also my brother was there as well. He,he wanted to finish his senior year of high school there. So he decided that he would just stay with my grandparents for a while. And then he came a year later to America. And he continued college here. So he went to George Mason.

 

Hilina  2:33  

Okay.

 

Hilina 2:35  

And did you leave anything behind that you wanted to bring with you to America?

 

Naomi  2:44  

Definitely a lot of family that I care about. I also had a- I had a couple of dogs that.. that I loved dearly. I had, you know, so many friends, you know, like I everything I’ve known was there. So honestly, I wish I could just bring everything with me. Yeah.

 

Hilina  3:07  

All right.

 

Hilina  3:12  

Do you remember anything special about your home country that you still think about?

 

Naomi 3:23  

…..I mean, I think culture is the.. culture is a really big part that’s just, you know, so unique and so different. It’s like, it’s never it’s never been the same since we’ve moved, So that’s, that’s, that’s something and…… 

 

Naomi  3:50  

another special thing.

 

Naomi  3:53  

You know,

 

Naomi 3:55  

you know, my dog.

 

Naomi  3:57  

Like I said earlier.

 

Hilina  3:59  

All right.

 

Hilina  4:04  

Okay, so my next question would be, did you have any problems with your journey coming to America?

 

Naomi  4:14  

 The only thing that was, I would say, difficult was visa. It was hard to get and it took a long time to get it and we actually got denied the first time around. So I have to apply again. And that was a really long process. And that was, I would say, one of the hardest parts of coming here. 

 

Hilina 4:38  

okay, And was there anything else about the journey that you would like to talk about?

 

Naomi  4:47  

it was also my first time on an airplane. So that was really exciting. And I, it was a lot scarier than I- then I had imagined because it was a, you know, a lot of shaking. And I just didn’t know exactly how it felt initially. But once we got off, it was it felt good. It felt, you know, it was nice and settled. And then the landing was also a little rough. So that was a little scary as well.

 

Hilina  5:22  

Yes, being an immigrant myself, I would say that coming to this country was my first time on an airplane as well. And I was very young too. So I remember being scared. And even my family being scared, just because we’ve never been on an airplane before. So I can definitely relate to that part of the journey and coming to America.

 

Naomi 5:48  

That’s really cool.

 

Hilina  5:51  

And so when you came to America, where did you first arrive in the US?

 

Naomi 5:58  

It was- it was at the Dulles Airport, in Washington, DC, if I remember correctly?

 

Naomi 6:14  

…Yeah.

 

Hilina  6:17  

And what were your first feelings when you arrived to the country?

 

Naomi  6:26  

It was… It was definitely exciting. To look very different, even the airport was so different. Even the shuttles that you get on from the plane on to the building was like different. And even when you step out, even like when you get to like baggage claim, and then you exit,

 

Naomi 6:53  

and you see all the like cafes and stuff. It wasn’t like that in Ethiopia. It was very modern, and very, you know, a lot like movies. I would say it was

 

Naomi 7:08  

it’s definitely not what I- I just I didn’t know what I was, what I was, what to expect with the rest.

 

Hilina  7:19  

Yeah, I would definitely agree. I think my first impression and coming here was there are so many trees. That was what I was thinking about. And Yeah, compared to Ethiopia, there was so many trees and not enough buildings, especially in Virginia. So yeah,

 

Naomi 7:42  

yeah. It’s a lot of road. I feel like you- here, you go a lot of distance without seeing people. And it’s not like that in Ethiopia. There’s like buildings everywhere. And buildings, buildings, buildings, and then you have to go to like countryside, but like even the journey from a Ethiopian airport to home, all you see is like buildings and barely any trees. A lot of people but it’s different here. And there’s no building. A lot of road a lot of trees.

 

Hilina  8:16  

Exactly. I would totally agree with that. Yes. Okay, Naomi. so what, what do you remember about your first days in the US?

Naomi  8:33  

I remember, like, right, my uncle had picked us up from the airport. And we, we went to Ihop so that was my first time going to ihop on you know, the, even the portion sizes here and he like, it’s a lot bigger. So that was a little surprising. It was a it was a lot of another thing was the air, It was, I don’t personally it was really humid here. And it was harder to breathe as well. So I remember thinking, why is the air like this? yeah, that’s, I think that’s one of the things I remember, like one of my first two days.

 

Hilina  9:23  

I would agree, so it seems like you came here during the summertime?

 

Naomi 9:28  

Yeah, so it was really hot as well. Like, it was like 90 something degrees. so, yeah.

 

Hilina  9:35  

I had a different experience. When I came here. It was during the winter, so I was so surprised to see so much so much snow. And the weather was freezing here compared to Ethiopia. So I think Yeah, you’re right. It’s very different from what we were used to. 

 

Naomi  9:52  

Yeah. I agree about the winter thing. It was,it was my first kind of thing. No school had gotten canceled. Like that was one of the things like people here look forward to. And we never really had that back there because it was always sunny. And so the most of the cool whenever we get cold, it would just be like rain. So it was nothing too crazy. Like it was here. Like they had like winter storms, and they get like extremely cold and you were like 10 jackets, and still wouldn’t be enough So that was I also remember thinking that.

 

Hilina  9:53  

yeah, it was definitely a different experience. I agree. all right, so to move on, what was the hardest thing that you had to face when you first came to America?

 

Naomi  10:50  

I think it was starting high school here like 10th grade here. And it was so different. Because first of all, like I didn’t know, I didn’t know that. Not a lot of people, I didn’t get really an orientation, I did get a lot of explanation to how classes were going to be. I didn’t even know that. We were going from class to class, which is different because back there, we had one classroom. And the teachers would come to us versus here, where you hide your own schedule. And you had like, only like four classes a day there you’ve had, yeah, like seven classes a day, but each were like 45 minutes. So that was also new to me. No one really explained it to me, they just gave me the schedule and set to go. So that was really like scary. There’s so many people I didn’t know if they were going to be mean or not. It was just, it was definitely nerve wracking. Another thing was, I think, I think it’s the students here are very, there’s, there’s not a lot of respect for teachers as well. That was another thing I was really surprised about So..

 

Hilina 12:13  

okay, so would you say that that was the hardest thing you had to deal with? And something that surprised you the most?

 

Naomi 12:22  

Yeah, I would, I would say that. I think the hardest thing would be my schedule. But the most surprising thing was, yeah, definitely the lack of respect. And I was like, it was really uncomfortable, because I wasn’t used to it. And I just didn’t know people Were even allowed to really talk to the teachers like that. Because it was a completely different dynamic in Ethiopia.

 

Hilina 12:52  

Yeah, I understand that, I would say the dynamic is way different, because of the way kids here are raised and the way that kids in Ethiopia are raised. So it also has a lot to do with maturity. On the probably because of in Ethiopia growing up, we had to really work hard and really mature at a young age in order to get, you know, to where we wanted to where here, I would say the kids are kind of babied in a way, and things are easier, and opportunities just come at you faster. So that would have a lot to do with like, you know, how they treat school and how they treat the teachers.

 

Naomi  13:44  

Yeah, I agree. I agree. I definitely agree. It’s just it was, it was really, it was I would say it was I would consider a culture shock. Because I was sitting there like, Oh, is this how it is now? And so yeah, that was really surprising.

 

Hilina  14:08  

Do you remember anyone who made the adjustment, in the US easier for you? And if you do, like, what what made it memorable? What did they do for you?

 

Naomi  14:23  

I’m someone who made it easier was one of my first friends that I met in high school. She, she was, it was first period,it was one of my first classes and we She was also  Ethiopian as well. And when we started to talk, we had a lot in common, because, you know, culture wise and she had, she had also spoke the same language. And she also had, the more we spoke we learned like a lot of each other. And then she, she kind of showed me how things work. She’s the one who explained the schedule thing like it was so hard for me to find my cause my classes. So she had walked me the class. And she had explained to me how, like the different colored hallways meant different things. And she had she just, she was just overall like a really nice person. And we’re still friends to this day, she’s one of my closest friends. So she was, she definitely made it a lot easier.

 

Hilina  15:39  

And would you say that she was one of the more welcoming people here?

 

Naomi  15:52  

At first, people weren’t the most welcoming, because a lot of people they had their own friend groups. And they all they whenever we were in class, they all spoke to people they only knew. And especially since in this country, since there’s so many students, it’s hard to even know who’s new. And that’s so different from my old school because every new person you would know. So here, everyone spoke to their own person, I didn’t really feel welcomed, I felt out of place. It was really uncomfortable. But once I met my friend, that my friend I had mentioned earlier, she made it, it was a lot easier to relate to her and to ask questions that I didn’t really know about, like how school works here. So that was that was that was a, that was a difficult part of my adjustment. Here.

 

Hilina 16:53  

All right,

 

Hilina 16:54  

that’s good.

Hilina  16:56  

What problems Did you have that were caused by language differences? Would you say?

 

Naomi  17:07  

I would say since I did speak English, but I didn’t really understand like the slang and like, how, what people meant and how they said it, it was really different. I learnt English when my old school it was it had a British curriculum, so a lot of the A lot of the teachers they spoke English very well. And so people were even surprised that I didn’t really have a thick accent, when they would learn I came from Ethiopia just like a few literally a few weeks ago. And so that was, that was a difficult adjustment, especially with English classes. Back then back home, I learned English as a second language. And so what was actually interesting was, when I had when they were testing my placement, they didn’t think I needed extra help with English since they thought I spoke it so well. So they put me they didn’t put me as a ESL here. They put me in a regular English. So when they did that, it was really hard for me to keep up i a lot of things they were saying I didn’t get it was the readings was a lot. Even though the assignments they were difficult to interpret. I had to spend a lot of time with my English teacher. She was even little surprised that they placed me in the regular English. So that was a that was a difficult adjustment there.

Naomi 18:48  

but another thing was math easy though. Math in America is very basic. And it was a lot of the things I learned when I was younger. Well, that was a that was a interesting judgment.

 

Hilina 19:06  

Yeah. Okay,

 

Hilina 19:08  

so you mentioned that you learned English at your school in Ethiopia. So what kind of school did you go to in Ethiopia where they taught English as a second language?

 

Naomi  19:21  

It was, they didn’t expect us to learn to know very well, English, so it was English as a second language. And the curriculum was it was a it was a British curriculum. So a lot of a lot of everything was in English, except we had our amharic classes, but everything else was in English. So it was it was more but it was more simple when it came to like English but harder math.

 

Hilina  19:56  

So was that like a private school In Ethiopia?

 

Naomi  20:02  

Yeah, it was a private school. It was..It wasn’t one of the best. But it was it was, it was a pretty decent school. But nothing compared to the schools here. So that’s definitely a big reason why, like I said earlier, it’s one of the reasons why we moved here.

 

Hilina  20:26  

Yeah. So I could understand that. You said the curriculum was much different. The English being taught at the school in Ethiopia and the English that they were teaching here. Do you think that your parents placed you in the in that private school in Ethiopia in order to prepare you for when you would eventually come to America for higher education?

 

Naomi 20:55  

No, I don’t think so. Because my family didn’t intend to move here. Like, initially, they had planned to have kids there grew up there, probably kids go college there, because that’s what they did. But when they heard about the difference, how different it is here and how much better it is, and how everyone has how students have a better opportunity to advance and, you know, especially with high school is a big part of it, the college especially they thought it would, it would better us and it did. So I think I think hadn’t I come here, it would have been a completely different experience that I probably would have still been I probably would’ve went to college there. I don’t know what major I would have been. I had I found it through school here. Because in America, they had a lot of electives. And they didn’t have that there. It was only just great English math history. Like gym, like, the most basic course, they didn’t have, like, all these interesting art classes and graphic design, you know, like graphic design, I really got into that when I came here. Or I even got into like, Medical Assisting, like courses that I took in high school. And that’s how I learned about like, how much I liked nursing, and that’s why I decided to pursue that. So like a lot of opportunities that I got from high school here versus things I would have never gotten when I was in my old school.

 

Naomi  22:32  

So yeah.

 

Hilina  22:34  

Okay.

 

Hilina 22:38  

Okay, so, Naomi, what would you say was something that you expected in America, but it turned out to be different from what you were expecting?

 

Naomi Speaker  22:52  

I think one thing I’d say is, you hear a lot about, like, equal opportunity. And like, how America is, you know, whats that saying?

 

Hilina  23:09  

The land, the land of the dreamers, or something?

 

Naomi  23:15  

Yeah, like something like that

 

Hilina  23:17  

the American dream?

 

Naomi  23:18  

THE AMERICAN DREAM YES! you would hear a lot, a lot of people saying like, America, it’s the American dream, you know, but it’s, it’s really not like that, because there’s a lot of like, equality issues, and especially with like, race, and gender, it’s, you know, there’s a, there’s a big gap between the, you know, the higher class and the middle class and lower class. And there’s also a lot of differences with like, who, who’s given priority over jobs. So, I would say like, a lot of my family, they did struggle finding jobs. Because if they didn’t have their experience, they didn’t have the requirements that America expected. Like, for example, my mom, she, she had a nursing degree in Ethiopia. And she knew a lot about like, you know, nursing, she’s been a nurse for many years. And, but when she came here, they had they had told her that she’d actually take all the classes. so that was a really, that’s also another another thing that I think America is like really different. They have a lot of specific, specific requirements that I feel like they’re not really and it really hurts those who try to have a life here from different countries. So I feel like that’s also what that’s one thing and also, you know, of course, Like, you know, racial equalities like, because.

 

Naomi 25:05  

But I’m not going to get into that so yeah.

 

Hilina  25:10  

Okay. Okay, I understand that.

 

Hilina 25:17  

yeah, I can definitely relate to that as well, you know, I think all immigrants come to the US expecting, you know, to live their dreams and to provide for their families. And I don’t think they expect the barriers that are put up here. So just like your mom, my dad was also in the same position and had to retake a lot of classes to get a nursing degree here. So I think those kind of things can set people back. And I know, it’s definitely a shock for them, because it’s not what they expect when they come to this big, you know, land of opportunity country. Sure. Yeah. So I would agree with that. To move forward on so I know you attended some school here, do you want to talk about the institutions and the level of education that you’ve received in America?

 

Naomi  26:17  

Okay, so, at first, I went to high school in South County High School.

 

Naomi  26:24  

I was there 10th grade through 12th grade. And then I moved, I went to a community college, which honestly, I didn’t see myself doing. At first, it I always thought like, I would go to like a much bigger school University. But I had, like, you know, a lot of 10th grade, 11th grade and 12th grade. The closer it came to like picking schools and moving on from high school, I decided it was like any financially smarter to go to a community college, but at the time, it didn’t feel like it. It felt I was a little bitter about it and was upset. But I’m looking back, I think that’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. And then after, after the community college, I transferred to George Mason, I transferred into their nursing program, and now I’m doing that so like I like all that time I spent..thinking I was going to go to a different school had, you know, changed. Last minute, actually, I was planning on going to vcu, so I had an accepting that I was going to go, but I, it wasn’t financially really smart. So that was, now I’m going to mason. And I will love it I love it here. So I’m glad I did that.

 

Hilina 27:56  

Yeah, me as well. I, I know that with foreign parents and with immigrant parents, going to a community college, after coming to America is not seen or taken very well, because I went to a community college as well. And my family was not happy about it. And I know, majority of immigrant families are just not happy when they feel like they brought us to this country for a better opportunity and community colleges are looked down upon. So would you say that was kind of an issue or an hard decision for you to make? Because of how your family felt about community college?

 

Naomi 28:42  

Yeah, a lot of people did make me feel bad about it. and tried to tell me like, you’re so much better than this. Like, why are you doing this? A lot of my family like it was I was even hard to say out loud, at some point because of how much it was frowned upon. Which was, which is ridiculous. Because community colleges is the reason I’m not going to be in debt when I graduate. So, but you know, clearly foreigners like foreign parents and family. They don’t understand that because Community College in Ethiopia has, like, you know, it’s very, you know, it’s not it’s not good.

Naomi 29:24  

So, here when they hear Oh, you came from Ethiopia, like, what, what was the purpose schools like go to a better school, and they just don’t see that. It’s literally the same thing. Because at the end of the day, we’ve got on my degree is from George Mason University and not becoming a community college. So I think I think it was hard for them more than more than anything. So, so like, so understand that it was a lot smarter. So when you know, and especially one thing I was hard to was when they kept saying it to me, I started to believe it. That’s why i started to become like, more bitter about like going to community college. But looking back, like I said, like, I think it’s one of the best decisions I met, like, so many people there, it was very diverse. I loved literally all my professors. I, I saved so much money and I-, they don’t they don’t understand that part. They just think community college and think it’s the worst thing you could do. So I think, yeah.

 

Hilina  30:35  

Yeah, I would definitely agree that it is a way better opportunity than what it seemed for. So you’re correct.

 

Hilina 30:44  

so moving on, while going to school here. Have you had any jobs? And if so, do you want to talk about some of the jobs you’ve worked here?

 

Naomi 30:57  

my first job I had was in 11th grade, I started working at Chipotle. It was really it was like half a mile from where I lived. So I would actually sometimes walk because it was when it was good weather. So that was very convenient. It was I loved it at first because I was so excited to make money, my own money. I didn’t have to ask like the parents for things I wanted. So it was very, like exciting. But as time progressed, it was as time progressed, it was straining physically. And I think doing that in high school, made me realize how much I needed to do better for myself. I didn’t want to think, you know, live working paycheck to paycheck, especially, like, I think that was so important for me to get out of like, you know, things like, especially how common it is in America. So I definitely like that’s, that kind of made me realize. That’s one of the things I learned. And then after high after chipotle, I started working at chuys. It’s this Mexican restaurant as well in, in Springfield, and it’s I liked that job because it was there wasn’t a lot to do nothing like triple weigh like it was very laid back. It was new. We just sat people and that was it. So that was I liked that job, and I’m still working. Yeah.

 

Hilina  32:39  

All right. Those are some cool jobs. I like how you mentioned that working these type of jobs will kind of motivate you in a way to do better and just remind you why you came here to this country is for a better opportunity. Would you say?

 

Naomi 32:57  

Yeah, for sure. For sure. It’s definitely, definitely like something made you think about things, you know?

 

Hilina  33:06  

Yeah,

Hilina 33:09  

so to ask you, just a question about some of your favorite foods in America? Since we’re on the topic of restaurants,

 

Naomi  33:24  

okay.

 

Naomi 33:27  

I actually my favorite and favorite food I have here is Mexican food. even though its not american food, but my food is my favorite food. That’s why I worked at Chipotle, a Mexican restaurant and again, Mexican restaurant. So I love Mexican food, like tacos. burritos you know, the sauces. I just love all of them. So that’s one of the reasons I started working and I’m still working at Mexican restaurant, So yeah.

 

Naomi  34:01  

You know, it definitely it does not be back home. The cultural food is like so you know. So, so much better. So definitely, it doesn’t compare but it’s very good.

 

Hilina 34:19  

I know I know, Mexican food has a lot of different spices and flavors, and that kind of similar to the food we eat in Ethiopia. So would you say that you like Mexican food a lot because you miss food is like something you missed about back home?

 

Naomi 34:38  

I think I think it’s very seasoned. And it’s very does have a lot of spices, but it’s nothing compared to what it was back home. So it’s it’s, it’s definitely something I’ve thought about

 

Hilina  34:59  

So going off that, is there anything you miss about Ethiopia and being back home? 

 

Naomi  35:09  

The thing I missed the most is definitely the people. Like I said, I’m basically all my families and almost all my family’s there. And all my friends that I grew up with since like kindergarten all there. So that’s, that’s definitely the thing I miss the most.

 

Hilina  35:27  

Okay, And how would you say that you and your family maintain the Ethiopian culture while living and being adapted to America?

 

Naomi  35:37  

We, we speak Amharic, when I’m home all the time. Like, that’s all we speak. And then we also celebrate all the cultural holidays like we get we there’s always a get together at my aunt’s house. So we celebrate, like we dress up in our cultural clothing. And we watch like, you know, different, we listen to the different than we listen to the different music, we watch movies. And it’s just like a really nice gathering to just celebrate whichever holiday and we never usually don’t miss it. So, you know, except for, you know, COVID. So it we did miss a couple this year, but we’re usually really persistent and

 

Naomi 36:24  

about maintaining our culture.

 

Hilina 36:28  

Yeah, I think that’s a big part of specially Ethiopian families that come to America, I think they do a pretty good job with keeping us involved in our culture, by speaking in the language with us constantly still celebrating the holidays, and just making sure that you know, we don’t lose our roots.

 

Naomi  36:50  

So yeah, for sure. I agree.

 

Hilina  36:56  

Is there anything that you heard about America coming here? And is there like, what were your expectations? From what you heard?

Naomi  37:15  

I heard

 

Naomi 37:18  

I heard they had a better education. So that’s one thing. Obviously, that’s very true comparing. And I also heard if the food was better here, but I beg to differ. I also my expectations, I don’t really have any, because I’ve never been here before. But it’s definitely different. And I was it was a, it was, it was surprising how different it was, but I wasn’t really expecting anything, if that makes sense. 

 

Hilina 38:01  

Yea, I understand that.

 

Hilina 38:06  

so would you say it was hard leaving Ethiopia or it was exciting? And what would make you say that?

 

Naomi  38:17  

it was definitely a little bit of both. It was exciting, because it was exciting to experience something new. But it was hard. Because it’s like, it’s so different. And I was I didn’t really know what I was expecting. And I was also leaving, you know, so many people I cared about. So that was really hard to do. But it was really exciting. Because it’s just, you know, a different different experience, better education, different people. But definitely both. 

 

Hilina 39:02  

I’m sorry, sorry about that. I was gonna say, Did you consider living anywhere else like other than the US?

 

Naomi 39:12  

I did consider living in the UK for some time. But I after college, I mean, after high school I want that was the plan initially, but I realized that I didn’t want to go to through the process of like, you know, adjusting to a different country and like, you know, meeting people and being away from family. So I decided it wasn’t best sort of idea So, but I did want to live there for a while for some time.

 

Hilina 39:48  

So if you had not immigrated to the US, what do you think your life would have been like in Ethiopia now?

 

Naomi 39:56  

I think I probably would have picked a different major, more, more with something that did that, that had more in IT or engineering and something math related. I feel like I would have done that. But because I came here and I had like, the chance to take different electives, I really had the chance goes through go through different classes to find out find something that truly interested me versus something I thought would be like, good. Something that would pay well, if that makes sense. So I think one I don’t, the main thing is, I think I would have definitely picked a different major. And I might, if I had stayed in Ethiopia, I don’t know if I would have even continued to school. So there’s a lot of possibilities as to how my life could have been. But I was fortunate enough to follow a different path because my parents had decided to come here.

 

Hilina 41:19 

Okay, so we’re getting to the end of our interview so I’ll ask you this last question. I will say you know what’s the best part about your experience coming to america and what do you look forward to in the future?

 

Naomi 41:38

I probably said this earlier but I think the best thing is the people i met here because i met so many people who like showed me how things worked and who are truly like really nice people and I met I met closest friends here and another thing is like you know finding my passion for nursing that was really exciting because looking back now I can’t imagine doing anything else and you know it was difficult you know to get here but it was definitely the most most exciting part. Also like my parents built a life for us here, i’m really excited to make them proud and show them how much they did for me and how much is like show them how much I can do for them now in the future working as a nurse maybe even advancing in my nursing career, I mean probably I’ve been thinking about also doing my masters so all those things that I know for a fact I couldn’t have done had I been in ethiopia and i’m so grateful and so fortunate enough to have had opportunity like this because they are so so many people in ethiopia who do not nearly as much as i’ve gotten and for that im like beyond grateful to them and so i’m really excited to build my roots here and you know to even to give back also people in ethiopia as well even like when i work here i dont make alot of money obviously but i try saving up and sending money to orphanages in ethiopia i try i send it my grandmother and my grandmother send it to orphanages there so i thats i try to help as much as i can and that’s you know obviously thanks to my parents that’s really you know the best part about the transition.

 

Hilina 44:22 

Yeah, thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions i know both of us actually as children of immigrant you know we’re excited to finish college and make use of the opportunity that we’ve been given I definitely agree with you that you know we have a duty you know to build a life here to give back to our country and give back to our parents for giving us an opportunity that a lot of kids in ethiopia you  know our age wish that they could come and get the same opportunity for a better life so I would completely agree and i want to thank you again for taking your time out of your evening.

 

Naomi 45:14

No problem!

 

Hilina 45:22

Alright, Thank you and have a great evening!

 

Transcribed by https://otter.ai