Asian American Stories Video Competition – Romeo Morales “The long journey was marred with tears of disappointment and joy”

Essay by Romeo Morales:

“When I stayed in this country for good, the odds against me were great. I was 50, physically challenged, and had no legal papers to speak of.

I saw myself like a rolling stone, drifting or a leaf, free falling down in the land of milk and honey, where the wind of change could make or break me.

I came legally but ultimately acquired the dubious tag of an illegal alien. Working illegally, I accepted a $300-a-month salary to support my family in the Philippines. The long journey was marred with tears of disappointment and joy, always with threats of arrest by immigration officers at any time. I would have lived in fear, but the camaraderie of friends, some of them in the same boat as me, kept me afloat. Until the big change came that made me belong here.”