Since I grew up in Ukraine
then moved to USA
and stayed, I often get asked this question: “So how do you like it?” I say
sincerely – “I love it”. I tell them I love the people and I love the nature.
My two favorite things. The problem with USA’s
image and those who don’t like it anymore or never did, is plain and simple.
You’ve got to get rid of that image of the perfect country, ideal society, the
super power. Because, let’s be honest, it’s not. 

It is just like any other country. It has its pluses and
minuses. Almost any book I read about immigrants was how “they lied” about this
land of dreams. Well, yeah… what did you think, it is some kind of wonderland?
For some people here their dreams come true, for others – not so much. Some
people come and stay, some people come and leave.

I mean, I can understand why people get disappointed. There
are lots of myths about USA.
It is the product of politics and some major PR forces, whose job is creating
that image. But most people who come here quickly realize what’s up once they
get a reality check.

So, myth number one. Money doesn’t grow on trees here. I
know many people think so. Trust me, I checked – nope, not true. You have to
work hard for the money. Often, several jobs. Being a workaholic is prestige
and somewhat required. You only get one week of vacation, maybe slightly more
after years of working for one company. It is not like Europe
– can’t order a couch from Italy
until September because all the manufacturers are on summer vacation.

Myth number two. Medicine is not the best here. I mean
“conventional” medicine, the one they practice in those big expensive
hospitals. They only know pills and surgery. If that’s what you like – sure, be
my guest. If you are interested in getting rid of your ills and keeping your
body parts, you are better off using your native traditional methods.

Myth number three. For a “freedom loving” society, there are
a lot of restrictions, regulations and prohibitions. For example, there you
cannot go to the park after dark. It is for your safety. The idea of “your”
safety is used as a reasoning to restrict your freedom of choice to go to the
park after sunset. Ironic, isn’t it?

Depression is a number one illness here. Many hate the money
gamble going on at the stock market. I could understand why someone would not
like New York and want to destroy
those pillars. It has a destroying effect on people, pressing them down, making
them feel insignificant. Even the colors of buildings are depressing.

But hey, who said that
is the symbol of the American freedom? To me, that symbol is the Big
Sur Mountain,
hugging the Pacific Ocean off the west coast. I sit
there on top and think that these mountains remind of the Western
Ukraine so much, the Karpaty. I feel like an eagle. I believe I
can fly. Truly free.

My grandma always tells me: “don’t forget your roots.” Ever
since I left, she writes poems about me and reads them to me over the phone.
For the longest time, she believed we all are going to come back to Ukraine.
She hates this country because it took us. But yet, she didn’t want to come
here. I think of her and my roots when I see the mountains along highway 1 or
280. And I grow new roots. They transcend through time, geographical location
and generations.

This country is a home for such an exotic mixture of
cultures, languages, traditions and foods, all of which are able to co-exist
with each other. There is really no place like this in the world.

I’ve met very kind, open minded people here. Some of them
came form other countries, others are locals, American. They always say that
word as if it is not special to be American. I always ask them – why not?

Oh yeah. Myth number four. Not everybody is white, Anglo-Saxon-looking
American. In fact, most everyone is not white at all. I think the whitest guy I’ve
ever met is the guy named Jeremy at a software company I once worked. He wears
a shirt and tie every day, making his face look even paler than it already is.
How does he breathe with that collar so tight around his neck? He walks his
head forward, curving his back and shoulders to follow the head; the rest of
the body extends backwards with his hands swinging back and forth. He is the
one promoting a corporate-like environment. Not many people like him. He is the
whity-white. Compared to him – I’m a dark skinned woman. But people like him
are the minority. People I socialize with are Indian, Mexican, Jewish, Russian,
Ukrainian, Chinese, Lebanese, Turkish, Italian, African.

Some people I truly love. My friend Jesus once saved Menn, a
teacher who fell victim to university budget cuts. My other friend Buddha saved
his friend after he ate magic mushrooms and fell off a cliff at night. My
friend Paul makes amazing music mixes. My friend Lili is a specialist on many
cultures and speaks five languages, including Thai. My friend Alan can fix any
computer and makes highly technical and intellectual conversations. He once
posted this comment to my Leash Enforcement article: “This story a classic example of drone behavior. It's mostly caused by
someone behaving like a robot and enforcing the 'letter of the law' rather than
the spirit of the law. “ 

Yes, indeed. The spirit.

As I was about to take my US
citizenship exam, I thought of that spirit. I think of the spirit of the US
Constitution, written by the founding fathers. So genius and simple, but yet,
so many are struggling to understand what it means. In question number 89 in my
Citizenship study guide, it asks “What kind of government does the United
States have?” The answer is: “A Republic. In
a republic, the power that the government exercises comes from the people
themselves. Government is therefore responsible for protecting the rights of
all persons, not just a few special people.” And then there is a quote by the
president Abraham Lincoln that the government is “of the people, by the people,
and for the people.”

Now, that’s got to be an inspiration for a change.

And if anyone, even yourself, tell you that there is nothing
you can do about this and that, think of that question number 89, the Lincoln
who’s still sitting there in DC, watching over the White House. You better believe
it because you can.