citizen

I meant to blog earlier this week but after my swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday morning, life got real ordinary, real fast…and somehow it no longer felt urgent to write about becoming a US citizen. It was a beautiful, sunny day and 49 of us were socially distanced in the courtyard of the federal building. The judge who swore us in was warm and friendly; he told us we hailed from 23 countries and had each of us stand up when we called out our country of origin (“One person came all the way from…Canada!). Then he congratulated us on making it this far because “it isn’t easy to become a US citizen.” He said last week there was one man who had waited 15 years for his chance to take the oath! I definitely know how lucky I am—I applied in February 2020 and just over a year later I took the oath. The pandemic definitely slowed things down but moving to Chicagoland might have sped things up…I really don’t know. I do know that I’m lucky I had an immigrant father who opened the door for me; May 24 marked 17 years since my father died and the day of the ceremony was the one-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. The judge couldn’t help quoting Thomas Jefferson but I suspect most of us knew that the preamble to the Declaration of Independence has never been true for everyone in this country. That didn’t make us any less grateful or excited, I don’t think. People die trying to get into this country; I know how lucky I’ve been, choosing to leave one wealthy country for another, not needing an interpreter to guide me through the application process and then stand behind my chair throughout the ceremony. We weren’t supposed to bring guests but some family members were off to the side taking photos. I just took a selfie, walked a few blocks over to Garrett’s, and bought myself a bag of popcorn before taking a Lyft back to Evanston. Cozbi stopped by to give me my first hug in over a year, Edi sent money so I could have dinner delivered, and Akosua sent me cake and balloons! I don’t mean to sound blasé about becoming a citizen because it [image error] was a big step for me and they registered us to vote even before the ceremony began. It’s a big responsibility and I just missed a round of local elections but will be ready when it’s finally my turn to vote.

Now that I’m fully vaccinated, I’m mentally preparing myself to rejoin the world. I’ll try taking the train next week and the week after that I’m meeting friends downtown for afternoon tea at The Drake. Tomorrow we’re dining outside here in Evanston…and I’m thoroughly enjoying being unmasked whenever I’m walking outdoors. Despite the sudden drop in temperature, the peonies are blooming in the Shakespeare Garden and I’ve got new birds at my window—downy woodpeckers and sleek gray catbirds. I finished a new picture book last weekend and on Monday finally started a story inspired by the beautiful dolls made by my friend Janine. We had a very ugly interaction with the film studio last week and so I asked to have the deal canceled; fortunately it hadn’t been announced and no money had been paid so the execs seem willing to call the whole thing off. That means more paperwork but eventually we should get the rights back and my agents are already on the lookout for another studio—and this time we won’t be seduced by the money. Better to take a reduced advance but work with folks who have integrity and respect for me and my vision.

I’m hoping I can find some fireworks this weekend! Hope you enjoy the Memorial Day weekend.