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ORDINARY CASE BRINGS EXTRAORDINARY JOY
by Michael J. Gurfinkel, Esq.
Last Sunday, I was at my office, going through the
Saturday mail, when I came across an approval notice from INS
for one of my client's adjustment of status. Although it was the
weekend, I figured that my client would not mind a call from me
to let her know about the status of her case.
At first, my client was surprised to receive a telephone
call from me on a Sunday morning. Her immediate statement to me
was, "Is there bad news about my case?"
I then stated to her, Congratulations, INS has approved
your case. You are now a greencard holder!" For the next
minute, all I could hear on the other end of the phone line was
screams and shouts of joy. My client kept repeating, "Thank
you Lord, thank you Lord. I've been praying for this moment!"
When I told her that the INS approved her adjustment
of status (or greencard) without requiring an in-person interview,
this brought about a new round of screams and shouts of joy by
my client. She kept saying how she could not find the words to
express her joy. She was numb and in total shock. My client then
started sobbing, saying that for over nine years she had been
illegal in America, always living in fear of being caught or deported.
She felt like a prisoner.
In fact, I remembered just a few months ago, she
called, in tears, saying how her brother had just died, and she
wanted to go home to the Philippines for the funeral. I had to
tell her, at that time, that she could not leave the U.S.,
or she would be unable to return to the U.S. for at least ten
years because of a new law that bars people from returning to
the U.S., if they had been out of status over one year. I remember
she kept begging and pleading with me, over and over again, telling
me how important it was for her to go home. But, I kept telling
her that I was putting her safety and best interests first. Even
though I wasn't telling her what she wanted to hear, I was really
looking after her. She told me at that time that she was putting
her faith and trust in me, and, therefore, would listen to me
and not go home.
With the approval of her adjustment of status, she
could now go home. My client also relayed that, by coincidence,
her mother was in the U.S. visiting her. Now, she would be able
to go back with her mother, and visit the Philippines (and, of
course, the grave of her brother).
No matter how many times I am able to help people
with their cases, it still brings to me my own personal sense
of joy and accomplishment, to see what a dramatic change in the
person's life comes about by their becoming "legal".
This woman's prolonged shouts and screams of happiness show that
"ordinary" cases can bring about "extraordinary"
joy.
I know that there are so many other people out there
who are in the same situation as my client. They are in the U.S.
illegally, but desperately hoping and waiting for a way to become
legal. To all of you, I encourage you not to give up, but, instead,
find the strength to hang in there and achieve your goals. I hope
that, someday soon, you, too, will be able to scream and shout
with joy over becoming "legal" in America.
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