Is America for Sissies?: A Story of Determination Amidst Adversities

Many times we admire people's lives and achievements and wish we had the same success. In most cases, we are not aware of the struggles they went through to reach that level of achievement. We all like a good story that makes a nice, feel-good movie. We need to realize that every rose has thorns. I was told that it's only in the dictionary that the word "success" comes before "work."

I hope that someone out there could read my memoir, relate to the struggles, learn one or two lessons, and probably not give up but trust what God is doing in their lives and keep going. Coming from a Third World country and migrating to America was not a cakewalk for me, and I know there are many other people who have ended up giving up their American dream when they could have pursued and pressed on. It's very easy to praise God when things are going well, but the real test is to learn to praise God when the going gets tough. I have read and heard that the God of the mountaintop is the same God of the valley. As much as we don't like the valleys, that's where character and resilience are built. Failures sometimes give us the best opportunities to grow.

Sometimes we need to read and learn from what other people have gone through to avoid giving up and to keep pressing on toward our goals. In this book, you will learn that it's definitely a good thing not to throw the baby out with the bathwater. I hope and pray that you will learn not to waste the experiences that gave you not-so-desirable outcomes but to embrace those times and learn the lessons that God wants us to learn and not give up. I think many times we rush to enjoy the good things and skip over the challenging points that brought us desired outcomes. My coming-to-America story is that way, and I hope you will be encouraged by reading this book.