“The Arrival: The New Country” created by Sean Tam

The city of Boston, at long last. I gaze upon the skyline dotted with cranes, chimneys, and even taller spires stretching far into the horizon. Incredible. Below power many, many boats. Steamboats tattooed with bold letters, migrating from the Sea of South China. Skiffs with decks overflowing with the salmon of Alaska. Steerages choked with women and men push through onto the shores. I find myself on one of these overcrowded beastly vessels. I feel Scotland is as far out of reach as the fog nestled sun.  My eyes study the mousy grey sea of the likes of top hats, fedoras, and bonnets. Up, down, up, down go the silhouettes with the shift of the steady waves. Tall, short, all skinny- all looking, pointing, forward. Relief sweeps the uncomfortable tiredness of the journey with the subtlety of the wind. Everyone is thinking of the exact four words- This is now home. I can feel the buzzing hustle and bustle of America, so unlike that of the grassland country on the other side of the ocean. I think of the new job, of city strolls under the blanket of the night, of the towers and fumes that will enclose me. The gangway descending to the dock creaks as I tromp down into the concrete jungle- the tigers await.