Journey to a New Beginning

In the spring of 1946, my grandfather, Patrick O'Regan, immigrated to the United States from his home in County Kerry. This decision to immigrate or, "cross the pond," as my grandfather said was an extremely difficult decision for him to make. He lived on a farm and was the youngest of six siblings. When he was out of school and on his own, he beqan to thinK about how he was going to be successful. When he was younger, his dream was to take over the farm. But, that dream vanished once he found out that the oldest of the brothers would inherit the farm. That's when he knew he had to move for his own sake.

My grandfather had many reasons why he didn't want to move. For twenty-six years he had lived in a small country and that was his home. He would be leaving this place he had grown to love and possibly never see it again. He had six brothers and sisters, and he loved them very much. If he moved, he knew that his brothers and sisters couldn't visit him. They weren't very rich and lacked spending money. He loved Ireland but longed to make money and be successful in life, and he knew he couldn't do so there. He made his decision and left his loved ones behind for a new life in America.

Once the journey began there were many positive things that he would gain in the United States. He thought there would be more opportunities outside of Ireland. He wanted to make a future for himself where he knew there would be jobs for him. The United States was full of businesses and economy so he felt confident he would be happy there. Ever since he was a child he had wanted to travel away from Ireland and explore different places, so this was his chance. In America, he knew he would have a chance to make a decent living.

There were so many good and bad things that came from his journey to America. If he didn't immigrate to Canada and then move to Boston he would have never have met my grandmother, which would have lead to me not being born. Also, after a hard start in the new land he eventually made a good living and even had money to send home to his family back in Ireland. He made enough money in America that he bought a summer cottage in Ireland so he could visit whenever he wanted. Unfortunately, by the time he returned to Ireland thirty years later, both his parents had died.

My grandfather had to make a big and important decision like many people have to through in their lives. This decision affected my father's life and my life too. It affected our history and where we come from. This decision was very hard to make, but in the end it all worked out for the best.

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