One Decision By Janet Perez Eckles

The day finally came. We were leaving our familiar La Paz, Bolivia and heading to the land of opportunity. Our hearts thumped with disbelief as we saw our dreams finally turn reality. My brother 11, and I at 12 said a tearful ‘good-bye' to my grandparents and headed to the airport.

Seated in the back of an old cab, I turned to glance out the back window attempting to take in all the details of that familiar scene. Maybe it was not pretty, but it was all I knew, it was home, and I felt secure in it. I glanced at the swing; it was swaying with the wind as if waving goodbye to me. Everything else was still, perhaps the neighborhood was also sad to see us go. I took a long look, as long as I could. I took it all in, said a silent good-bye and placed that scene in the files of my memory.

Back then my parents made the decision to leave. And that simple decision changed my life. Though I swallowed the knot that throbbed in my throat, , the rewards we found replaced dim nostalgia with the fresh air of opportunities.

One decision opened doors for me to have access to technology, develop skills to contribute in the workplace, follow paths to success beyond my profession and finally serve as encouragement to others.

Often, it's a decision, though difficult, that opens a brand new world. It becomes the step that takes one to the threshold into fulfillment and triumph. What decision is waiting for you? And what step is the one you have yet to take?