I think I began to grow up that winter night when my parents and I were returning from my aunt's house, and my mother said that we might soon be leaving Leningrad to go to America. We were in the Metro then. I was crying, and some people in the car were turning around to look at me. I remember that I could not bear the thought of never hearing again the radio program for schoolchildren to which I listened every morning before going to school.

I do not remember myself crying for this reason again. In fact, I think I cried very little when I was saying goodbye to my friends, relatives, and even to my father. When we were leaving I thought about all the places I was going to see-the strange and magical countries I had known only from adventure books and pictures in the world atlas; I even learned the names of the fifty states because their sound was so beautifully foreign and mysterious. The country I was leaving never to come back was hardly in my head then.

The four years that followed taught me the importance of optimism, but the notion did not come at once. For the first two years in New York I was really lost-coming from a school in Leningrad to a Brooklyn yeshiva, and then to Chapin, I did not quite know what I was or what I should be. Mother remarried, and things became even more complicated for me. Some time passed before my stepfather and I got used to each other. I was often upset, and saw no end to the "hard times."

My responsibilities in the family increased dramatically since I knew English better than everyone else at home. I wrote letters, filled out forms, translated at interviews with Immigration and Social Security officers, took my grandparents to the doctor and translated there, and even discussed telephone and utilities bills with company representatives. I spent a lot of time at my grandparents' house, and eventually moved in with them.

As a result of my experiences I have learned one very important rule: Ninety-nine percent of all common troubles eventually go away! Something good is bound to happen in the end when you do not give up, and just wait a little!! Of course, troubles need help in getting out of our lives, but I do not mind putting in a little work. For some reason I believe that my life will turn out all right, even though it will not be very easy.

America gave us freedom and independence. It also made us assume the responsibility for ourselves. Nobody can ruin my life unless I let it be ruined. We create our own happiness. It is up to us to use our freedom with responsibility.

When I was twelve I read a book about a girl growing up in tzarist Russia. Her grandfather once told her, "Life is like a zebra. There are whites, and black stripes on it. When you are on a white stripe walk slowly, enjoy it. When you come to a black stripe raise your collar, shut your eyes, and run as fast as you can go to get to a white one. But, remember, there is always a white stripe after a black one!"