Starting Over In a New Country at 40?

Here are a few things to keep in mind

Starting over in a new country, especially at 40, can be exciting or frustrating.

For me, it has been a bit of both.

Photo by Helen G on Unsplash

I recently relocated to the United States of America and the last year has been a whirlwind. There are days I feel upbeat about the immense potential that moving here holds, and there are the pallid days that I look back to the fulfilling career I left behind and wonder why we can’t have it all in this adult world of give and take. On those days, I seek comfort in the wisdom of my decision to relocate to be with my family after 7 years of estrangement and take succor in my wife’s smile and my children’s constant jokes that light up my nights.

In coming to terms with my present circumstances I’m learning a few things.

First, is that I have to be grateful.

Considering my legitimate route to entry to the United States, my pain story is nowhere near as dramatic as that of those who snuck in and live in perpetual night, always hiding away from the light. Those for whom the system is a constant, ticking timer, counting down to their avulsion from this society as they struggle to distill their entire identity into eight numbers and two hyphens.