Expanding My Personal Freedom.
Immigrating to the United States from Russia marked a huge change in my life: new country, new culture… lots of things to learn! And one of my first most important tasks turned out to be getting a driver license. I quickly learned that a driver license is more than just a legal permit to drive a car. It is also a personal ID and a big part of one’s personal freedom.
One may not legally drive a car in the US without a state-issued driver license. I had my Russian driver license but by Utah law it was valid only for few months. In order to get a Utah drivers license, I had to pass two tests: one written and one road. Some of the road rules were new to me, for example, right turn on red light, and a special lane in the middle of a road for left turns. So, I got a copy of Utah Driver Handbook and started reading it with a dictionary.
Also, I realized that I could not do basic things in everyday life without a driver license. In stores, I could not pay by check without it. At doctor’s office, the receptionist would ask me for my insurance card and driver license. Even at a liquor store, I was asked to show my drivers license. I was not used to it because in Russia it is not the main personal ID. Russians have a domestic passport for that.
But there was yet another important reason for getting my driver license. Without it, I was confined to my house and the immediate neighborhood. It was a strange feeling for me, because in Russia I could get just about anywhere by public transportation, that is how most Russians
live. Here in Salt Lake City, I learned that public transportation was not always convenient or even available to get to certain places so I became dependent on my husband and friends to drive me around. This dependency made me feel restricted and awkward. One morning I had to be at the Immigration Services office on the other end of town. Normally, somebody would give me a ride, but it so happened that everybody was very busy that morning. My husband had an important business meeting, and our friends could not help me either. But I really had to be there so my husband ended up driving me to the appointment, and then rushing back to his meeting. It was a bit tense, but we both made it.
I remember very well the day I passed my final test and got my driver license. I felt a sense of real accomplishment and even joy. I made an important step towards establishing myself in the new life and getting my personal freedom back. That was two years ago, and in retrospect it seems like it was an easy step. Well, I hope in not too distant future I’ll look back at my current English language studies and think that was also easy.
Immigrating to the United States from Russia marked a huge change in my life: new country, new culture… lots of things to learn! And one of my first most important tasks turned out to be getting a driver license. I quickly learned that a driver license is more than just a legal permit to drive a car. It is also a personal ID and a big part of one’s personal freedom.
One may not legally drive a car in the US without a state-issued driver license. I had my Russian driver license but by Utah law it was valid only for few months. In order to get a Utah drivers license, I had to pass two tests: one written and one road. Some of the road rules were new to me, for example, right turn on red light, and a special lane in the middle of a road for left turns. So, I got a copy of Utah Driver Handbook and started reading it with a dictionary.
Also, I realized that I could not do basic things in everyday life without a driver license. In stores, I could not pay by check without it. At doctor’s office, the receptionist would ask me for my insurance card and driver license. Even at a liquor store, I was asked to show my drivers license. I was not used to it because in Russia it is not the main personal ID. Russians have a domestic passport for that.
But there was yet another important reason for getting my driver license. Without it, I was confined to my house and the immediate neighborhood. It was a strange feeling for me, because in Russia I could get just about anywhere by public transportation, that is how most Russians
live. Here in Salt Lake City, I learned that public transportation was not always convenient or even available to get to certain places so I became dependent on my husband and friends to drive me around. This dependency made me feel restricted and awkward. One morning I had to be at the Immigration Services office on the other end of town. Normally, somebody would give me a ride, but it so happened that everybody was very busy that morning. My husband had an important business meeting, and our friends could not help me either. But I really had to be there so my husband ended up driving me to the appointment, and then rushing back to his meeting. It was a bit tense, but we both made it.
I remember very well the day I passed my final test and got my driver license. I felt a sense of real accomplishment and even joy. I made an important step towards establishing myself in the new life and getting my personal freedom back. That was two years ago, and in retrospect it seems like it was an easy step. Well, I hope in not too distant future I’ll look back at my current English language studies and think that was also easy.
2 comments:
Зашибись!
Надь, я так по-английски никогда писать не буду! (этого, конечно, никто и не требует)Но здоровско!
И рассказ живенький такой, и ...слов нет.
в писатели ихненские не хочешь пойти?
Nu, Gel', ob"ektivno tut vsego procentov 30 moih zaslug - eto moi samye pervye potugi, i Sasha mnogo so mnoj bilsya. No vot v poslednih - procent rastet, i kogda ya rozhu chto-nibud' absolyutno samostoyatel'no, tut-to i nastupit vselenskoe schast'e:-)
Skoro ya novye dobavlyu.
A v pisateli - esli b vzyali, ya b poshla:-) A che, sidi sebe doma, nikuda ne hodi, i pishi, pishi...:-)A den'gi sami v shtabelya skladyvayutsya:-)Krasota!
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