My American Dream 🇺🇸

Dear Diary,

The “Ber” months are officially here, and for us Filipinos, that officially marks the beginning of our Christmas season. 🎄🎅🙏

However, it looks like I have already received an early Christmas present this year from—can you believe it?—New York, USA. 🇺🇸

As I opened the package, I saw the license I had dreamed of for so long—my USRN license. And suddenly, the dream I thought had remained dormant in my heart for so long came alive once again. 💜

But perhaps, to understand why this moment means so much to me, we have to go back to where it all began.

My twin sister and I have always been fascinated by America. When we were younger, we would read countless novels set in the United States and watch American movies and television series. We would often wonder what it would feel like to finally see the country we had only read about and watched on screen. And so, we began dreaming of visiting America someday.

While we were in nursing school, that dream slowly evolved into something even bigger.

We started dreaming of becoming USRNs someday—of living and eventually working as nurses in the country we had dreamed about for so long.

Back then, we never knew whether we would ever achieve our American dream. We never knew that life would eventually take us in different directions, giving each of us our own challenges, detours, and paths to follow.

I went to New Zealand and helped my family, while Mara had to wait several more years before she was finally able to achieve her dream of working in the United States.

Years later, Mara is already living the American dream we once imagined together—and now, in the most unexpected way, that same dream has found its way back to me. 🇺🇸💜

And perhaps that is why receiving my USRN license from New York felt like more than simply receiving a piece of paper.

It felt like a dream I had once tucked away quietly in my heart had suddenly awakened.

It reminded me of the girl who once read American novels with her twin sister and wondered what it would be like to see that world for herself.

It reminded me of the nursing student who dared to dream a little bigger—to become a USRN someday.

And it reminded me that sometimes, the dreams we think we have left behind are not really gone.

Sometimes, they are simply waiting for the right moment to find their way back to us. 💜

So, join me as I relive the journey that brought me one step closer to my American Dream—the story of my NCLEX journey, filled with challenges, detours, and unexpected turns along the way. 💜

I promise to take you on my journey toward achieving my American Dream, one chapter at a time. 🇺🇸💜

Love,

Maica 💜

🇺🇸✦ CREDITS ✦🩺

Written & Created by:
👑 Maica Angelle Feraren
Registered Nurse • Writer • Storyteller

Creative & Editorial Collaboration:
🤖 ChatGPT
Creative Assistant • Editorial Partner • Visual Storytelling Collaborator

Contributions by ChatGPT:
— Assisted with organizing and refining Maica’s personal story
— Helped develop the narrative and editorial flow
— Assisted with wording, captions, and storytelling
— Helped conceptualise the visual theme for My American Dream
— Assisted with image-generation concepts and creative direction
— Helped transform Maica’s ideas, memories, nursing journey, and American Dream into a cohesive visual story
— Provided editorial suggestions while preserving Maica’s personal voice

Personal Story, Experiences & Photographs:
📖📸 Maica Angelle Feraren

Final Creative Direction & Approval:
👑 Maica Angelle Feraren

One nurse. Four registrations. One dream that crossed an ocean.

🇵🇭 → 🇳🇿 → 🇺🇸

Nurse Diaries
Stories from the journey of a nurse chasing dreams beyond borders.