Dear Diary,

It's mind boggling how long ago it was since I came to America; it feels like it just happened yesterday. It was definitely an unforgettable experience that was both exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time.

I'm grateful now that I'm here living my life in Michigan with my husband. I want to share my journey with you about immigrating to the US, so here we go!

20 years old and I had my bags packed and ready to go to America. I was extremely nervous, but excited. I love China, don't get me wrong, but I just didn't like being controlled by foreign nations that dominated the ports. I wanted to gain my freedom, which was why I was on my way to America. Plus, I wanted to earn some money to send back to my family, since we didn't have much money to begin with. I love my family very much, and thought of them everyday; I hoped to see them in the US soon!

I arrived at the doc where a ship took me and 40 to 50 other people to America. I knew that we were on our way to Angel Island in San Francisco, and I knew that we would be asked a lot of questions. I was hoping I wouldn't get deported. I know a couple of people who came with me on the ship did get deported back to China. It was devastating to see them come all the way to America just to be sent back to where they started.