Sorry

My name is Anne-Chloé and I’m 16 years old. I was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. My mother died when I was barely six, my dad abandoned me, and so I had to live with my godmother. I only spent a year with her because she had to leave for the United States. She couldn’t take me with her because I didn’t have papers at the time, and I wasn’t her daughter. So, she handed me over to one of her friends who raised me for six years. She gave me a home, and she treated me like I was her own daughter. My life wasn’t a fairy tale even though I did have a home and someone to protect me. I still wanted my mother’s love, and my father’s love also.  

Over time, the situation in Haiti became worse, and in 2023 we learned that President Biden had implemented a program to allow people to come to America. My godmother then applied for me. It took about eight months for them to respond to my application. On September 17, 2023, a Sunday afternoon, I landed in the United States. I was both scared and happy. My godmother went to pick me up at the airport. I wasn’t really familiar with her, so I cannot say I was excited to see her. 

Time passed, and I had to go to school. The first day, I was really scared because I didn’t know anyone, and schools in the United States are very different from schools in Haiti. The school I attended in Haiti was all girls, but the American school is coeducational. I’m a shy girl. Even when I lived in Haiti, I didn’t have a lot of friends at school. I was sure that it was not going to change in America. At school, everyone was chatting and laughing with people they already knew. I wanted to cry because I felt all alone. I couldn’t find my classes. I was so lost. I didn’t speak a word of English, yet I had to go to classes in English. In Haiti, they teach us English, but not the way they speak it in the United States. At the time, I could only say my name and a few simple words in English, but it wasn’t enough. 

When I got home, my mother asked me how my day had gone, I replied: I didn’t understand anything. She told me, “Oh, there’s a special class for those who don’t speak English.” She told me to go to student services and asked them to enroll me. She told me to go to them and say, “I don’t speak English, I need to be enrolled in English classes.” I had a lot of trouble saying those simple sentences. And then the next day, I went to school for the second time, then I went to my classes and then it was English class, I heard people speaking my language, Haitian-Creole, and that’s when I felt relieved to find people like me who were struggling to learn English too. Even though I didn’t have many classes with them, I was happy to know they were there. 

Now that I speak English, I have a dream I want to accomplish. I’m going to graduate high school in 2027. My biggest dream since I was a child has been to become a pediatrician. If God allows me to, I want to study that profession and excel in it. I want to repay everyone who took care of me, and I know they want a great future for me. I’m going to focus on school and try the best I can so that I can accomplish my goal.  America has a lot of opportunities and I’m going to seize every opportunity that I find. I want my future self to be a successful woman. I’m going to improve myself day by day. I know the path is not going to be easy, but I’m going to try my best. I want to share a message to all the adolescents who are immigrants in America like me. Whether your parents had a difficult time bringing you here or not, they want a good future for you. When you come here, focus on school, work hard, and don’t be lazy. You will have all the time of your life to play and have fun later. I hope you succeed no matter what you intend for your future.