What a taxi driver told me on my way back home yesterday. She told me she drove more than 10 hours a day and slept for less than 4. How does she do it? Her children’s future is what keeps her going, she says.
She is a single parent with the burden of three children on her shoulders, clueless about what happened to mommy an year ago, when the government announced that her work visa will expire in less than an year.
Fear locked her down so bad, she slipped into instant depression. She didn’t even have the courage to apply for a minimum wage job.
When her 5-year-old started waking up each morning to check Google for answers about her visa—even before he had brushed his teeth—she got a wake up call.
How could she let her paranoia destroy the lives of her children? Enough is enough, she told herself. She will stop making excuses and go face the world.
She went and got herself a driver’s license, applied to Uber, and started driving. She now watches surge prices like a hawk and ventures into the streets of New York when she can earn more for every mile put in.
Her papers came through, few months ago. To her surprise, her work authorization got extended by 10 years. She couldn’t believe it, at first, but then it all made sense to her in a philosophical way.
“Miracles happen when we make them happen. God opens doors where there are none—only when we open them for ourselves,” she said.
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Featured Image by Nicholas Githiri
Posted in: diary, Stranger on the Street, USA