Memories never die!

(My story.)

“Take the first step in faith.

You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step”.

Martin Luther King Jr.

(1929-1968)

Unit 1: No turning back! America is ahead of us!

(A memoir based on true events.)

Chapter 1: “How did I pass my visa interview?”

There are two things in this world that are the fastest and most fleeting: imagination and time... In the space of time, which is in constant motion, many things grow old and fade away. Another thing I realized is that certain events and phenomena take on a different meaning when you look back at them after some time. No matter how much one admires the great works of artists, when you look too closely, you realize they are just rough traces of paint spilled randomly on paper. But as you move further away, the rough traces of paint blur and you notice they are turning into a wonderful phenomenon. Similarly, any phenomenon reveals new facets as it moves away from us.

Looking back, it has been over a year since I returned from America. It felt like I had just returned home with a storm of emotions yesterday, and now 14 months have flown by. During this year, I had the opportunity to review some things. During this time, I finished my studies and got a job. The students I prepared directly and indirectly also went to America... Keeping in mind the Kazakh proverb "A teacher without a student is nothing," I prepared students who intended to go to America and asked for my help. Believing that "every Kazakh is my only one," I did not take a single penny from any of them. Of course, I am not saying this to brag or to pursue any goal. I am writing this with the thought that if you can, current and future graduates of Work and Travel should also prepare their own students...

Considering that this life, full of hustle and bustle, is given to a person only once, one must achieve a lot in this life. Just as there is no bird without wings, there is no person without a dream. Each of us has a dream. Not one, but dozens, hundreds, even thousands. But unfortunately, most of us do not have a goal to reach them. A person feels happy only when a dream comes true. We face many obstacles on the way to achieving a dream. It is not easy to be happy. Dreams do not come true easily. But this does not mean it is impossible. Being happy is possible for everyone, and everyone has the right to it. Every person must fight for their own happiness. And you must start right now. A well-known public figure, Altynbeck Sarsenbayuly, said in an interview: "The truth not told in time has no value." "There is no benefit from an action not taken in time"! My path was not easy either. Things that come easily have no value. You will regret tomorrow what you did not do today!

So, let me tell my truth as best as I can:

As soon as I heard on April 29 that I would have an interview at the US Consulate in Astana, my heart raced, I bought a train ticket, and without telling anyone, I urgently set off for Astana. The train from Aktobe, bypassing Kostanay and Kokshetau, arrived in Astana on April 28. That morning, when I woke up on the train, I noticed that my head was aching and I was feeling unwell. What was the reason for this? Was it the worry about the visa? No, no! It was the cold of the north, which was already grabbing me by the throat before I even arrived...

Yes, Astana did not welcome me with a warm face either. It met me with its piercing wind. When I was flying high with joy in Aktobe, I forgot to take my thick jacket. Who knew that even though it was the last week of April, the weather in Astana would be so stubborn. At that time, the sun was shining in Aktobe...

Just getting off the train and looking around in surprise, the "Welcome" I got in Astana were women offering their apartments, saying "Apartment, apartment." It turns out there are talkative women here too, who from dawn to dusk, whether they are listened to or not, whether they know the person or not, speak to everyone passing by without a moment's rest! Although we see such women around the Aktobe train station every day, I did not think I would see them at the Astana train station. For me, who was worried about where to stay after arriving in Astana, this was a godsend. We reached an agreement with the owner of one of those apartments and headed there. I thought the apartment was nearby, but it turned out we had to walk quite a distance. With my nose running, my throat hoarse, and my head splitting, all I could think about was getting to the apartment as quickly as possible and collapsing on the sofa. I had no desire for anything. Only occasionally did I cast a listless glance at the surroundings from the bus window. Souvenir buildings of various shapes moved past one after another. The apartment owner turned out to be a good guide. She introduced us to Astana all the way, and her mouth never closed. So, whatever, we finally reached the apartment! Even though I lay on the sofa for 3-4 hours without moving, my headache did not go away. In the end, I had to go to the pharmacy to buy medicine. In between, I was looking through interview questions and preparing myself. However, when you are choked by a cough and your breath is short, you have no desire for anything. After a while, I got up and looked out the window of the sixth floor. The first thing that caught my eye was a house built in the French style at the foot of the building. The top of "Baiterek" also peeked out from behind the doll-buildings of various shapes. Yes, it is the very "Baiterek" that is praised to the skies whenever there is a report about Astana on domestic TV channels. When I saw "Baiterek," my thoughts and dreams about it were dampened as if by cold water. I thought it was a towering skyscraper like the Eiffel Tower in Paris or the Washington Monument in Washington, giving beauty and grace to the whole city, but our "Baiterek" turned out to be a dwarf left behind the other buildings...

So, with a high fever, I welcomed my first morning in Astana. When we left the house at 7 o'clock and stopped a taxi, we reached the front of the consulate in 1-2 minutes. If we had known, we would have left around 8, but quite a few students had already gathered. There are all kinds of girls here too. You can't get enough of looking. One more beautiful than the other. Cute dolls. How beautiful Kazakh girls were, oh my...? Seeing the beautiful and cute girls, I felt a little relieved. Standing next to such girls, there was no room for illness in my body. If I forget my English while thinking about the girls and fail the visa, that would be the real fun. Although I tried not to show it, I barely stood there, shivering in the cold of Astana in light clothing. I started to recall and repeat the questions to myself. Although the students were gradually entering, the queue did not seem to be moving. They were calling them out one by one by their names. A stranger who had just arrived at this moment went inside as soon as his name was called. "What a lucky person," I thought to myself. "When will they call me...?"

Maybe it started to get a little warmer, or maybe the ringing laughter of the girls around me started to be a cure, I don't know, but after a while, I started to feel a little better. Around 10 o'clock, my name was finally called. So I entered the embassy corridor. There was a queue here too. But not like the one outside, it was quite warm. The guards were carefully checking every student and letting them inside. With such a check, how could the queue move? But safety is always first. At one point, after passing the check, I walked through the inner courtyard towards the next building. In a few minutes, our fate will be decided inside this very building...