[new americans]
“Ahhhh!” my mom yelled happily on the other end. “What happened?” I asked. My mom couldn’t talk because she was very excited. I didn’t know why. “Qué pasa Mom?” I asked. “Immigration accepted you, and you have to travel to Bogotá, Colombia, for some exams,” she said.
By Laura Restrepo I had been living apart from my mom since I was three years old. We talked on the phone often, since she was far away in North Dakota, USA. The next day, I went to school and told all of my friends that I had been accepted for immigration. I still could not believe it! “You are going to leave me!” my best friend cried. I walked up to her and hugged her. “I’ll never forget you. I just can’t pass up this opportunity to be with my mom again,” I said. Nine days later, my mom bought me a plane ticket to Bogotá, a big city in Colombia. I was so afraid of getting lost and not being on time for my appointment, so I left early that morning. In the hotel where I was staying, the concierge called a taxi because some taxis on the street could kidnap you. I was a little scared, but also excited, because I did not know what was going to happen when I got to the government office. When I eventually reached the office, many people were waiting in a line outside. I thought that I had arrived late, but when I asked an old lady, she told me that they let in ten people each time the door opened. Minutes later, the security guard opened the door. I wondered what kind of exams they would do to me. Now was the time that I would know the answers to my questions. I was in the waiting room when, suddenly, I heard my name. “Laura Restrepo!” the nurse shouted. “Here,” I said, nervously. “Walk down here,” she said. I was nervous because I’m afraid of needles. I entered the room the nurse had pointed to. A few minutes later, a different nurse entered the room where I was. “Do the exams include needles?” I asked. The nurse didn’t answer. After an hour, the nurse gave me a big package and told me very seriously, “Do not open this.”
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