Inez - Culture Shock
While, for many immigrants, there is an initial period of excitement upon arrival to a new country, (the ‘honeymoon' phase), the difficult realities of everyday life may, at a later point in time, result in feelings of homesickness.
In her interview from 2005, reflecting back on her arrival to the U.S. two and a half years earlier, Inez expresses those feelings of homesickness and the importance of learning English to overcome the feeling of displacement that moving to a new culture brings.
| Inez: | when I coming for the Uni- from Mexico to Portland, I don't have goals. ((shakes head)) I come eh for (.) eh follow eh my husband follow my husband because he has the work in the Mexican consulate. But nem (.) I don't have goals. I don't have work here. I have more frustration than goals. Ehm but maybe for one or two months I have depression. But and eh one month eh in the second months that I live here I come the PCC, for learn English, and I begin the goals and I things I need uh speak very well English because I don't understand nothing and this terrible. This very hard because I have two childrens and I need help for the ha- the house the homeworks and I need help for everything for my family. For shopping. For ((shakes head)) everything. | |
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