I am up late because my American family is cooking and re arranging our house for an Independence Day celebration. This will be a very special Independence Day, because tomorrow I will take the oath to uphold the ideals of the United States.
I have been in the United States since 1985. I came to the United States as an 'Asian Bride' to be really honest with everyone. My husband and I have been married 30 years, and we have 4 sons and 7 grandchildren.
Tomorrow I will raise my hand, and repeat the words of a judge with many other people on the day of commemoration of American Independence.
There will be people there of all sorts, all religions, all manner of the diversity of mankind. I know, I went to classes with most of them. This is our graduation ceremony.
We studied about the beginnings of this great nation, the foundation of it's laws, and how the Constitution is a living document. We learned that we didn't have to change who we were, that there was no such thing as assimilation, except to an ideal that makes us truly American, no matter what we look like, or come from.
I have 4 sons, each one of them born and raised in the very house I am typing this article from. Each one of them learning that patriotism is not bowing down to whatever the leaders say, but to pitch your voice high and loud with conviction your beliefs, because that is being an American.
I will have my husband, a hard working man dressed in the suit and tie he rarely wears standing off to the side cheering for me as if I were a runner crossing the finish line...no not first, and not last, but just in the joy and elation that I finished the course.
Tomorrow, when I raise my hand and repeat those words, I will still be Chinese. I will still have the love and memories of my childhood, and the morals and ethical values of my family, just as every other American has brought to the table. I will add my dish to the wonderful diversity of people, foods, and culture, and promise to uphold the ideals that makes America great.