adopted

i passed a kind of milestone in my life recently. my application for permanent residency in the UK was granted, and i can now remain indefinitely in the country, work and live without restriction, and in another two years apply for UK citizenship. if i do decide to apply for dual citizenship, my journey towards this will have cost about £3,000 over six years.

i realize now that i always took my canadian citizenship for granted. unless you actually go through the process of applying for numerous visas -- worrying about your ability to stay in a country, wondering about the worthwhile-ness of putting down roots (even decisions as simple as buying a toaster seem to take on greater consequence), or just the cost of the application process itself -- the right to live and stay in a place is not something that one would bother thinking about. i've felt for a long time now a renewed admiration for my parents, who immigrated to canada in their 20's with next to nothing, and for their adoptive country for having allowed them to stay.

perhaps, then, this idea of settling somewhere new and making my own way was something i inherited. i do remember, many years ago, back when hyedie and i were both still living in vancouver, we were encouraged by a friend to make a list of our top three "unattainables" -- not truly unattainable, but three things we wanted to experience in our lives but perhaps were not sure how to go about achieving or thought not possible at the time -- something to dream and work towards in the back of our minds. moving to a new country and spending a good chunk of time there was top of my list; as was learning to share my life with another person. strange how both "goals" have become so unexpectedly intertwined, and both are simultaneously everything and nothing that i could have expected and planned for.

the third on my list i will let you know if i ever achieve!

photo: a herb trough courtesy my father-in-law. he transplanted some rosemary, thyme and cilantro (here called coriander) already growing in his garden, and also planted basil and rocket which has started to sprout. hopefully we manage to keep everything alive for at least a few months!