An wonderful Encounter

I have always known that immigrant life is not easy. It is full of challenges, mental breakdowns, sweats and tears. But learning is something and experiencing it is completely different! You have the days of being unheard, invisibility and isolations. The most pathetic part is- another fellow human does that to you. You have always been nice to them, tried to be a friend, but they cannot even count you as a person when you are required to have a group study. On the other hand, I am facing tons of rejections from the employers- even after fulfilling all their conditions, even after formatting every CV and Cover Letter. I do not know anybody in this country and I am not good in networking. That has always been my Achilles Heel. People I have tried to reach out- could not help me. The worst part is- I am not even getting any interviews. And I am genuinely struggling to learn the new language which is far far away from my native language and English.

Even after all these insecurities and frustrations, I decided to dust myself a little and gather up myself. My husband and I decided to go for a walk. We walked- saw the beautiful yellow, orange and red leaves of autumn and felt how the nature is being little surreal before winter. There were chilly winds and we had each other. After finishing our walk- we went for our groceries. We decided to go to our favorite Bengali restaurant nearby. My husband is vegan, and he has married this carnivorous woman. So, Bengali restaurants always provide a perfect meal combo for both of us. We met a nice gentleman there who helped us to choose the menu. They had some upgrades. I talked Bangla when I went to pay. Then he became curious about me and asked about my country and all. I said that I am from Bangladesh and my husband is Swedish. He suddenly called his wife and introduced to us. So, he is from Bangladesh and he has a Finnish wife. They have been married for over thirty-five years. He met her 35 years ago in Finland, where he went to study. I cannot tell- how surprised I was! It seemed like my story from 35 years ago, and just the gender has been flipped.

I said- ‘omg! That’s how my story is!’ I came here to study and met my husband here. I thought I would go back, but now we are married! He and his wife said that ‘you never know what life has planned for you’! My husband and I kept chatting, and we got to know that they are also our neighbors. In the meantime, our food arrived and we got a complimentary naan and a Coca-Cola Zero from house! I cannot express in language that how blessed I felt at that moment. I was having a really really harsh time but having met that couple gave me the strength to keep going on. We told them ‘Please visit us’. They also told us if you want to hang out- you know where we are!

I will cherish this moment and want to express my gratitude to life!