1st Year Writing - Write a Profile. Life in America for a Middle Eastern Immigrant

Life in America for a Middle Eastern Immigrant
October 15, 2018
Life in America for a Middle Eastern Immigrant
The hustle and bustle of Washington Street in Boston in the wee hours of the evening almost delayed Hamir’s delivery of groceries for one of his esteemed clients just a few blocks from the busy Haymarket. Manoeuvring through the congested traffic from both the vehicles and the people walking home from work can be a cumbersome endeavor especially for a person who is not used to the busy life of the American cities. Carrying his bag of groceries, Hamir struggles to get past the wave of both incoming and parallel traffic of pedestrians as he keeps on apologizing to each and every bump he makes against fellow pedestrians who seem to move swiftly without a care in world. Everyone he meets or accidentally bumps into on his way to Hakim’s place, four blocks down the street from Haymarket, is either having a phone conversation or making sudden stops for reasons known only to them. A sudden, “hey watch it man,” from disgruntled persons brings Hamir to a stop as he begins pouring sincere apologies to a person who is already moving on ahead to their diverse destinations. He makes his delivery in time just to find his client unlocking the door to his house having arrived from work from a local hospital where he is a registered nurse. The two exchange greetings in Arabic and for a moment Hamir breaths out an air of relief as they chat about the ordeal of walking down the streets of Boston during the rush hour. Life in America offers a wealth of opportunities for all irrespective of their cultural, social, political, or economic orientations; living the dream, however, demands dedication and commitment to hard work, perseverance, and determination.
Hamir came to the United States six years ago as a Syrian refugee escaping the never ending war in the Middle Eastern country. At the time of his arrival, he was only sixteen years old with no one to count on but himself and the mercies of the free world. The war had taken away all members of his family through the indiscriminate shelling of civilians by the Syrian government as it sought to regain control of the nation. The extended members of his family had either been displaced through the war or joined the various factions fighting amongst each other and against the government forces in the recurring war. He had big dreams of becoming a doctor and building a huge hospital in a local province through donors, but after the war broke out, he settled for the ultimate prize of peace and tranquillity. Peace became a reality upon his arrival at the shores of Boston, Massachusetts, but tranquillity was still a distance way off from realization.
“I will be turning 22 years next month,” he says with an infectious smile as he takes a seat on a brown Syrian-made wooden chair he carried with him from the rubbles of his family’s home in Aleppo, Syria. Hamir jovially exchanges greetings as he sets out for the scheduled meeting at the Arabic restaurant next to his place of work at Haymarket. He speaks fluent English with a slight hint of the Arabic accent, which can only be noticed through a keen ear. He is an intelligent young man with a remarkable und...