Many believe that our ancestry helps shape us; helps make us into the people we ultimately become. I’m not certain whether or not this is the case, but I do believe that the actions of our ancestors definitely help shape where we eventually wind up living. For the most part, my family lives, and always has lived in Greece. Of course certain members of my extended family wound up in different parts of the world such as the U.S, Australia, Brazil, but never anyone from my immediate family’s ancestry. Odds were that a change of scenery would eventually have to happen. Next thing you know, my parents, 2 of my siblings, and myself found ourselves in Whitestone, New York in December of 2001. I was six and a half years old, knew very little English, and was in general terrified of New York because of the things I had heard about the attack on the Twin Towers.

            This trip to America though was not the first time my parents had come here. They had previously attempted to live in New York back in the late 70s. At that time my mom gave birth to my two oldest siblings, my sister, and oldest brother. Things did not work out and they were forced to move back to Greece where my father tried to open up several restaurants (some of which were successful for a time). During that period between the 80s and 2001, my Mother gave birth to three more boys, of which I was the youngest. Due to the ever changing governments, and economy of Greece at the time, the most successful of my father’s restaurants had to be shut down and so he decided to pack things up and move back to the U.S. He took along my two oldest siblings, my mother, and me. My two other brothers stayed in Greece as one was about to start college, and the other was living with his fiancé.

I remember very distinctly how my first emotion in regards to coming to live in New York was utter fear. I may not have been that old, but at six and a half years of age I was old enough to understand the kind of drastic change that was about to undergo my life. The adjustment though to my surprise was not that hard. I didn’t know a word of English that first year, but luckily thanks to some help from my mother, I was able to pick up the language pretty quickly over the summer, and feel like I’ve been thriving ever since. For several years my father moved from job to job. We had a stint in 2007, and 2008 when we went to North Carolina for a business opportunity. Unfortunately things didn’t work out and we quickly moved back here in 2008. Since then, things have really settled down, my Dad opened up a restaurant with my Brother-in-Law (now Ex Brother-in- Law), and an old family friend.  For the first time since I can ever remember my parents can finally breath a sigh of relief with me having started college, and them not struggling financially in every aspect of their lives. Like my ancestors shaped my past before me, I have no doubt that this immigration to America, will shape my children, and eventually their children. The truth is, I honestly can’t wait to see how the rest of my future will shape out.