Current Country:  Australia
Country of Origin: Philippines

"I have lived in Australia for 7 years with my husband and our daughter. I still remember the day my husband talked to my mother about us getting married. That meant I had to move to Australia. One of my siblings lives in Canada and another one in Singapore, so it was hard for my mum to let me go but she knew it was for the best and gave us her blessing. My mother said God had heard her prayers by giving better opportunities for her children to live overseas. But she said she now had to pray that they could all be in the same country. We are a very close family and it makes things harder to be all in different places.

Moving to Australia wasn’t easy. Everything was new, I didn’t feel confident speaking English all the time and expressing my emotions. I don’t have my mum and siblings with me and I haven’t seen my nieces and nephews in a long time. But other things make it the place where I want to be. My husband is always there for me. Our daughter was born here and we’ve built a home in Australia.

The people I met here have supported me to adapt. I have met some genuine people, very willing to help. I had help to practice driving lessons for my license. That avoided a lot of stress, especially for my husband!

Another thing that was a blessing was meeting other migrant women from many different countries. They have given so much to me and I am always looking for ways I can give back what I have received. I know people say there is no place like home, but home is where you make it and Australia is where I want to be."