I Had Two Attempts at Moving

We receive letters...

I had two attempts at moving. The first was five years ago. Back then, I tried to do everything myself. The attempt wasn't particularly successful. Thanks to a Russian official, I realized that in this situation (moving from Canada to Russia), I couldn't manage on my own. I cried, kicked myself, lit a candle in front of an icon... And spent four years recovering from the stress.
A year ago, my neighbor (also Russian) told me he was planning to move to Russia. I started trying to convince him that he was wasting his time. I'm the experienced one, after all! But six months pass, and he manages to do it. When I asked, "How did you do it?" he sent me a video in which a smiling guy in sunglasses says, "Still there?" (well, I mean "here," in the West), Come on home, and we'll help!
I'm not really a fan of social media and don't trust anyone there. But my neighbor's example stayed with me. So I decided to take another shot. I gathered all the information I could through my neighbor, and through him I found my way to "Path Home." My first reaction was shock at the number of people preparing to move; my second was relief that I'm not a complete idiot, since I'm not the only one who couldn't make this journey alone.

It's now October 2025, and my documents have ALREADY!!! been accepted for citizenship. I'm in wonderful Smolensk. Next week I'm going to a job interview. Yes, the work isn't quite in my field: I was an engineer there, and here I'll start as a foreman. But the promised salary should be enough for our small family of three. Our daughter is in kindergarten, my wife has made friends with the neighbors and has already completed a course in preserving jars for the winter😁.

Let me tell you: don't give up if it doesn't work out the first time. An unsuccessful attempt is just an attempt.

By the way, I still don't trust social media, but many thanks to the guy in glasses (as it turned out, that's Anatoly Bublik)! A firm handshake!

Good luck on your journey, everyone!

The author's spelling and punctuation have been preserved.

Regional group for moving to Smolensk