Take the Risk

Darlene S., Washington

Interviewed by Samantha S.

"My whole family lived in California...uncles, aunts, and even later on my Dad’s family also moved here, so I wasn’t afraid to come here. I was actually joyful coming here when I learned I was moving, instead of being scared."

We drove here, all the way from Washington. It was a long and tedious drive, but I don’t remember exactly how long it was. So, I was really excited when we first arrived in the town of San Francisco, California. We had to do this move because my father was in the military, so he traveled a lot. But, my mother’s family lived here also so this made it very easy for me to adjust to life here.  And the fact that there was no language barrier made it even easier for me; I was lucky.

                        Before I lived here in California, I lived in Washington, Olympia. I don’t remember that much about it, but I do know that it was very rainy there; a pretty big difference from California. We had a lot of fun there, too; we would go see the ducks almost every single day, and I loved that. But, I love California so much, I don’t even miss living there. I think this state is easy to adapt to for other people, because we have everything here; snow and sun.

                        The most exciting event for me in California so far is when I had a child. I would always smell the latex when the doctors came in to check up on me, they wore so much of it. And then, when the time came for me to give birth, it was hard. But in the end, it was all worth the trouble, because I had a beautiful baby girl, and I was very proud.

                        But on the other hand, the most tragic event was when my grandfather passed away. He was a great man, and a very nice guy. I still miss him to this day, and I get sad if I think about him. We had so much fun together- he was crazy. He reminded me of a big child.

                        I think from me you can learn that adapting may be hard for some, but there is a large chance it will be easy, too. So, don’t let what you think keep you from moving. Take the risk, and see what happens. What you think might be hard may be something really simple.