No one ever tells you how hard things are for real. Everyone only tells you how great it is, and they forget to tell you about the hard things that you will go through. I’m talking about the exchange student experience. The truth is, that’s about all I can think about right now. Of course I knew it would be hard, but I didn’t realize the hardest part would be leaving my new home and not my old one. When I left my little town in Texas, it was hard, I won’t lie, it was extremely hard to leave my family and friends, but I also had the knowledge that I was going on an adventure. Everything was new, and maybe not wonderful, but being new made it a little bit more fun. I didn’t agree to fall in love, to fall in love with a place, a group of people, and a way of life, but it happened. I fell, and I fell hard. I made some friends, and at first that’s all they were, friends, but then they became something else. Two of them especially, became my soul mates. The first one, and most important person in my Argentine life is Andrea. My best friend. All of my life I’ve been searching for a friend like her, someone who understands me like she does. I can tell her anything, anything at all, and I don’t have to be afraid of what she’s going to think of me afterwards, I already know that she loves me and will continue to love me. Whether it be something silly about some guy that I liked or something serious like when they were having family troubles at home and I could share my own experience. No matter what it was, she always seemed to understand exactly what I mean. One of my favorite sayings here is, “Me entendès” which basically means, “do you get what I mean or am trying to say” and a lot of times the response is no, but every time that phrase leaves my mouth, she always says yes.
Me in exactly fifty words? Nice, kind, sharing, loving, not exactly outgoing, but not shy either, people loving, animal loving, fun loving, adventure loving, friendly, easy to be around, stubborn every once in a while, a little crazy when no one is looking, music loving, a good friend and person.
Title: A Point System for Immigrants Incites Passions Source: New York Times Date of Publication: June 5, 2007
Vocabulary:
systematic - based on a system
allocated - set apart for a specific purpose
bipartisan - supported by members two politcial parties
Main Ideas:
Personal Reaction:
What do I think of a point system to allow immigrants to the US? I think that it's not quite fair. Of course I come to this conclusion seeing as though I've spent the last year in a latin american country and have come to love them as a people, and these people as a whole wouldn't do well in the point system. At least according to the study referred to in the article. Personally I do see both sides, we need people in our country that help to better our country, just like everywhere in the world, but I don't think that we need to turn a blind eye to the people who seriously want to make a better life for themselves in our country, a first world country. Also, I've heard that the US takes the mindset that all of the people who want to come to the US want to become permanent residents. That EVERYBODY in the whole world wants to come to the US to make a new, better life. I can say that I have personally been with and loved people in a country with a worse economic situation and it's not that way. Not everyone that I've run into has talked about leaving their home here to make a new life in the States. In fact, only 1 person, in all the people that I've met has been interested in finding out more about living in the US. About making a new life in the States. 1 person out of I don't know how many. I even know people who have been exchange students to the US and while, they absolutely LOVED the experience, they aren't interested in leaving here to stay there. I'm not sure where the US gets this big head about being the best and that everyone else in the world wants to come and be a part of it. I can tell you, that's not the way it is. I guess I kind of drifted away from the topic. But the title of the article sure does have a lot of truth. The point-system definitely incited passions within me.
To access this article click on the link below:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/05/washington/05immig.html?ex=1338782400&en=70ca6408766ed4da&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink
