Citizenship

I had a smooth interview. Immigration officer was friendly. Got all the civics questions right (6, I think). Oath taking at Newark was done in the same afternoon.

As the last step in my application for US citizenship, I received a letter from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services requesting my presence for an interview at 1pm at their offices in the Rodino Federal Building located in downtown Newark (NJ).

I showed up promptly at 1pm, went up the elevators to the 15th floor, and was ushered into a huge waiting room filled with other applicants and their family members who had come along for moral support. As instructed, I deposited the interview notice at the box by Window 1 and waited for my name to be called. Every few minutes or so, one of the Immigration Officers would appear behind the glass windows and call out a name on the microphone, instructing that person to go to either one of the three doors where the officer would meet them and lead them inside for the naturalization interview.

After thirty minutes or so of sitting around and watching financial news, I was finally called and walked behind the officer (A. Cruz) down the hallway into his cubicle. I was sworn to tell the whole truth, and then was asked questions about my background and other basic information that was already in the application form. A basic civics and history exam was included in the interview, I had started reviewing the sample questionnaire that is available for download from the US CIS website, and while the answers seemed straightforward, I was still a bit anxious. Officer Cruz proceeded to ask me the following questions:

1. Who becomes President of the United States if the President dies?
Answer: The Vice-President

2. How many changes or Amendments are there to the Constitution?
Answer: 27

3. Who is the current governor of New Jersey?
Answer: Jon Corzine

4. What were the 13 original states of the United States called before they became states?
Answer: colonies

5. What are the two major political parties in the United States?
Answer: Democratic and Republican

6. What is the national anthem of the United States?
Answer: Star Spangled Banner

Fortunately, my time spent reviewing proved sufficient and I was able to answer all six questions correctly. The next part was the written English exam. He dictated a sentence in English slowly and clearly, and indicated the spot on the examination sheet where I was supposed to write it down. "Today, I am going to the store", Officer Cruz intoned. My hand shook a little bit as put that in writing, although I tried to make it as legible as possible - he reviewed my handwriting and declared that I had passed the exam.

Officer Cruz congratulated me on my naturalization, and ushered me out into the waiting room again, where I was to wait for the oath taking ceremony. Given the number of people still waiting to be called, that would be at least a couple of hours away (current time was 2pm). Good thing we had CNBC for entertainment, I thought, at the same time cursing myself for not bringing along a book. Too exhilarated to eat and too nervous to leave and miss my name being called, I contented myself with watching the daily gyrations of Wall Street and the latest developing stories around the world.

Finally, at around 5pm, with all the would-be citizens interviewed, all of us were asked to walk to the oath taking ceremony site down the hall. Another officer gave a brief talk on the benefits of citizenship, how to go about getting a passport and the benefits thereof, and other matters in the same vein. She then recited the oath of allegiance, which we all duly repeated, and once that was concluded loud cheering and applause ensued. And just like that, I was now officially an American.

To this day, that exhilarating moment is deeply imprinted in my mind, and I am still at a loss to fully put into words the incredible sentiments I felt. It had been an interminable wait (8 1/2 years), and the moment had suddenly come. I swear that never shall I forget that line, "Today, I am going to the store."