It’s time to get the mail for Juana Gaona Sanchez, the anticipation and nerves get to her as this one package could change her life . She opens it to reveal the perfectly shiny green card that she now has in her hands, Sanchez now has her pass to America.
Months and months of waiting seemed like an eternity of years for Sanchez, with each day her uncertainty grew whether she would be getting her green card or not, all the while she had to keep patient. When Sanchez received her green card in the mail on June 2008 , all that waiting had finally paid off.
“In 2008 I went a total of two times to Juarez City, Chihuahua for the appointments and interviews that would take hours , I would have to wait in a long line behind a multitude of people just to get in. I would see people coming out of the appointments crying, probably meaning they got denied, so I was always nervous” , Sanchez said.
Sanchez couldn’t contempt her emotion that whole week, all her family found out as soon as she had it in her hands. She immediately called her husband who was living all the way across the border over in the U.S, the phone call was an awaiting one for both of them, no more long distance phone calls and visiting to Mexico, Sanchez would finally have her family together like she dreamed of.
“My parents had always given me support, my siblings, cousins, everyone in my whole entire family,” Sanchez said. “Most of them had already been through the process so the best piece of advice was to have faith and be patient. My husband was my biggest support system ever he kept me patient through the never ending process and pushed me when I wanted to give up.”
Aug. 6, 2008 Sanchez stepped her last footstep on Mexican soil as she got on the bus with her mom and six year old daughter, headed to America for the first time. The two day trip was full of nostalgia and nervousness , all Sanchez new of America was what she heard from her husband and siblings when they would visit Mexico. She had many questions, having no clue what American life would hold for her, Sanchez was ready as cold be.
“That day was full of emotions as I packed my bags and said goodbye to my family in Mexico , my mom was telling me what it would be like since she had been to the U.S several times, but me and my daughter would have to wait and see for ourselves, the two day trip seemed like forever and was definitely tiring since we traveled by bus” , Sanchez said.
Having lived all her life in Mexico , Sanchez finally arrived at America on the morning of Aug. 8 ,2008. Tired, exhausted and sleepy, but Sanchez had made it along with her mom and daughter. At the bus station , Sanchez’s husband was waiting for them, he hugged her and their daughter , they were finally a united family.
“The real reason behind me getting my green card wasn’t just so I could migrate to America , it was to have my husband with my daughter and I in one place, whether it be in China or India I just wanted all of us to be under the same roof,” Sanchez said. My life has changed a lot since I moved to the U.S , the lifestyle is so different here and learning English hasn’t been easy to this day but I try my best because trying is what life is all about”
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