good on you!!! may God Bless...
Posted on 01/23/2015 4:06:11 AM PST by Tennessee Nana
On January 23, 1975, in a courthouse in Portland, OR, I sat with many other grateful immigrants and listened as a local judge, himself the son of immigrants fron Eastern Europe, congratulated us and expounded on our new responsibilities as American citizens. He was as teary eyed as we were.
Among our group was an 80 year old Jew from Poland. She had escaped with her family during the 1930s and had raised her children in America to be good citizens and to prosper. She cried and kept saying "Thank you" and we cried with her. Her attorney grandson explained that she had worked hard for her family and had not perfected her spoken and written English enough to qualify to become an American citizen until recently. Her decades long desire had been to be naturalized, and she worked hard to achieve her goal by learning English to the point that she was now finally eligible.
When we realize that illegal aliens who have entered our sovereign country are not required to learn our language, and have been excused by Obama and his minions, is it any wonder that this lady's determination to make herself presentable in all aspects for naturalization as an American citizen proves to be an even greater achievement?
That day for me will always be one of the crowning milestones in my life and I am misty eyed as I write, just as I was that wondrous day. As I stood will the others taking the pledge of allegiance to my new country, I was dazed and felt that it was not real but just a marvelous dream.
I served in the United States Air Force at the time, and I wore my uniform to the ceremony, and regards of the directives of the military, I showed emotion almost continually from my grateful and humbled heart.
January 23, 1975 will for me always stand out as the day I joined the millions of American citizens who loved and respected their country. What we have become since that day 40 years ago is sad, but my heart turns back to the time when it was a privilege to live in America and to be accepted as a new citizen, and I still rejoice in my country.
Tennessee Nana American citizen
PING
Congratulations—we’re very glad to have you!
What were your duties in the AF?
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Congrats from another A.F. vet.
Wonderful story. Thank you for sharing. I hope you don’t mind me asking, where were you born?
Thank you for sharing your story. And your service to our country.
[Mine is as mundane as can be.]
GOD’s blessings on you!
You and your kind are the heart and sinew of this great land.
Thank you for sharing your story. It is an inspiration.
Excellent. Thank you for your story of appreciation and gratitude....and for your service, of and to this great nation.
Today’s *immigration* policies tend to punish those immigrants who follow our EXISTING laws and reward those here illegally, who feel entitled to citizenship and as much FreeStuff as they can get.
Welcome!
Well said.
Happy Anniversary!
Bump.
good on you!!! may God Bless...
*APPLAUSE*
My Dad came here at age 5 in 1921 from Sweden. I have a newspaper photo of him in his US Army Sargent’s uniform being sworn in as a US citizen. He has a huge grin on his face.
My great-great-grandfather immigrated to the Republic of Texas from Prussia in 1840. He finally became a citizen in 1855. The reason it took so long was he thought the paperwork was done but some clerk somewhere didn’t file it.
Even though the US is in a slump (at best) we are still the greatest nation on Earth!
Happy citizenship day and thank you for your story. It’s good to read and to know how much becoming a citizen meant and still means to you. I suppose the state of immigration today should anger you more than the average citizen.
I agree with Irenic!
R2z
Congratulations. I am thankful, very thankful for the gift of American citizenship I received at birth. I am so very blessed to be an American.
Stop - you’re making me cry! Too early in the morning!
(Never mind the gripes I can make about ILLEGAL “citizens”.)
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