Saying Good-bye to the Green Card: Good-bye
February 2, 2010
“It’s final. I am naturalized citizen of the United States of America. I am an American—a Korean-American to be specific.
“The ceremony was a mix of corny and genuine. The couple in front of me held hands and glanced several times at their 8-year-old-ish daughter who was presumably American-born and their photographer for the day. The couple and the woman to my right shed a few tears as 121 of us stood up as the names of the 44 countries we represented were called out. Lucky for them I always carry Kleenex.”
So begins Kathy Khang’s Saying Good-bye to the Green Card: Good-bye; her thoughts on the occasion of her recent naturalization ceremony. Khang describes herself as a mother of three who lives in the north suburbs of Chicago. She works for a parachurch organization as a multiethnic director.
Khang writes that before entering the hall where the swearing-in rites were to be held, each soon-to-be U.S. citizen had to surrender their Permanent Resident Alien or “green card” after having their ID’s checked and double-checked. Here’s the line that got me:
“There was something beautiful and poignant in that stack of green cards—so many stories to be told.”
Read Ms. Khang’s essay in full at her blog, More Than Serving Tea.
