Few years ago, it somehow crosses my mind the thought of living and working in Canada. However, due to the high requirements, and huge amount of money involved. I did not entertain it. I said to myself, I am too ambitious and I’m dreaming a close to impossible dream. I don’t have any relatives in Canada, and I don’t even know anyone there. So, my life goes on and on back then, but deep in my heart, I really want to go to Canada. As time goes by, that little voice slowly fades away. I decided to maybe just go to Dubai, or Singapore as it is more realistic.
I reflected on myself. Why do I really want to go to Canada?
And the main, and strongest reason is my mom and siblings and my girlfriend. I
want to give them everything they deserve but I can’t. I can’t even afford to
buy an engagement ring for my girlfriend for 10 years, or even buy floor-mat to
my mom’s house, or even give school allowance to our youngest brother. The
salary I’m getting is just enough to survive until the next payday. If I have
new things, it will have to be paid in debt. I can’t continue leaving this way.
I needed bigger income, and the only thing I can think of is going abroad.
One day, my girlfriend out of nowhere just suddenly told me
that there’s an orientation about how to immigrate in Canada. Then I thought of
just maybe forget it because I don’t have the money anyway. As I said, the
money I earn is just enough to survive to the next payday.
One day, a cousin invited me to join a worship session called
The Feast. I have been an active Christian back then when I was in high school
and college in Cagayan de Oro, but after I moved to Cebu I haven’t attended any
prayer meetings or even church for almost 5 years.
At the Feast, I remember the speaker named brother Buddy
Tan. There was a part there where he asks to listen to your heart and think of
your innermost desire. He said, that little voice inside is the dream God
planted in your heart, and he specifically planted it to you because he knows
you will become a blessing to a lot of people! Just thinking of it now while
I’m typing makes me emotional. He also asked me to write it in a Novena to
God’s love, so I can pray for it every day, and in the Feast.
I wrote my dream of going to Canada with conviction, and I
also wrote down another dream of mine which is to finish a college degree.
After that emotional moment, I had written all my dreams in that booklet.
Few days, weeks, months passed. I was overwhelmed with God
giving me the resources to achieve my dreams. My girlfriend is the source of
all the blessings happening in my life. One of these is when she came across an
orientation regarding the Expanded Tertiary Educational Equivalency and
Accreditation Program in her office. She asked for a form to fill out and she
gave it to me. The requirement to get into this program is you must have a 5
years straight work experience in the field related to the course you want to
apply for.
That was 2014. I had already 5 years work experience in IT,
so I decided to apply for BS Computer Engineering in the University of Cebu.
The process was not as easy as you think, and it is very expensive. But then
again, I remember the teaching in the Feast that, you must be willing to pay
the price of your dream. It could be your time, money, or anything to achieve
it. I forgot the exact amount spent but it was around 100k php. The cost has
been half by my mom, my cousin who also sent me to school before, and my own.
Attaining my college degree was not easy. I must research and read on my own,
do projects on my own because I don’t have any classmates and most of my
lessons are sent through email. I have also learned to forget my pride and be
as humble to the ground to get what I need.
April 2015, all the sacrifices paid off. I earned my bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering. A dream that wouldn’t be possible without God’s grace and blessings of providing me the right resources and people to help me.
Above I shared to you where my determination is coming from.
In 2016, my Canada journey begins.
Around September of 2016, we attend a session from a
migration consultancy company who promise to assist you with everything to
migrate to Canada. They are full of promises, and since I was already entice
with Migrating to Canada, I took the chance and paid their service fee of Php 80,000.00. It was my Mom and my cousin Manang Anne who were the source of my funds.
After paying for that consultancy firm, I waited for what they could possibly do or suggest. I complied all the requirements they asked, which some are irrelevant and I just found out at the end. Nothing happen while waiting for them to do something, so I took everything in my own control. I read, research, and asked in the forums. I did everything to get useful information about how to achieve my Canada dream. That was my 2016. On the next blog, I will write about my year 2017 and 2018. These are the times when I got my Provincial Nomination from New Brunswick Canada, and my Express Entry application.
After paying for that consultancy firm, I waited for what they could possibly do or suggest. I complied all the requirements they asked, which some are irrelevant and I just found out at the end. Nothing happen while waiting for them to do something, so I took everything in my own control. I read, research, and asked in the forums. I did everything to get useful information about how to achieve my Canada dream. That was my 2016. On the next blog, I will write about my year 2017 and 2018. These are the times when I got my Provincial Nomination from New Brunswick Canada, and my Express Entry application.
