My Story

Moving to a new country halfway across the world and starting over in my mid-30s was never part of my life plan. But here we are.

I moved to Canada in 2022 after a huge, painful loss forced me to re-examine what the future holds as I became a single parent overnight. Sustaining a successful corporate career while making good money was no longer the driving force like it used to be. It was a hard decision because I needed to consider not only my future, but also my son’s (who was 14 at the time).

I never traveled outside my home country before all this. It was a dream I had put on the back burner to revisit once I’m close to retirement, or once my son leaves the nest and can support himself as a full-fledged adult.

I also have mixed feelings about living in a foreign country long-term as an immigrant. I felt that immigrants are generally treated as ‘second-class’ citizens. This is largely based on my limited observations of my countrymen who became Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs). Multiple generations of my fellowmen pursued the ‘American dream’ as health professionals like physicians, nurses, and caregivers, or other professions in other countries like Singapore, Japan, Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, to name a few. All are aiming to build a future for their families amid horror stories that come with adjusting to life as an immigrant.

But Canada was very welcoming, and I was hopeful. With this move, I figured it would be hitting two birds with one stone. My entry to Canada as an international student pursuing post-secondary studies is an opportunity for academic upgrading, which I was excited about as a lifelong learner. It would help me become a world-class professional or shift careers once I’m ready to return to the corporate workforce. My son would complete his secondary school education for free. Since I am authorized to work part-time while studying, I could get experience working under Canadian conditions. International travel would expose my son and me to a bigger world, which I didn’t have the chance to experience growing up.

It felt perfect. Of course, most of it remains to be seen.

I have been writing for a while in different digital spaces before we moved to Canada, but I decided to create this blog focused on our immigrant journey. It was a hit-or-miss in terms of writing consistently and staying on theme, but I find joy in having this space just the same. It is my life unfolding, and sharing snippets of it with the world is so much fun.

I hope you all feel the same as you accompany us on this journey.