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It's a long one but America doesn't turn 250 everyday :)
Happy Birthday America!
I came to this country in 11th grade and never once tried to leave it, not even in my head.
I didn't come here to escape India or to prove it wrong. I came here to make this my home.
I was lucky — I already spoke English, so that particular immigrant tax never applied to me. And for reasons I still can't fully explain, I never felt like I had to shrink myself to belong. I was shy, but not unsure. Every room I walked into, I assumed I was allowed to be in.
I never changed my name. Geetika, since day one. I watched people around me trade their names in for easier ones, and I understood why, and it was never for me. Except once — when I worked at a suicide prevention hotline, where the caller needed my calm, not my name.
The country I came to in 1985 and the country this is in 2026 are not the same country. Neither is the rest of the world, for that matter.
Things have gotten messier, more complicated, harder to explain in one sentence. And yet — this is still the best country in the world.
It is the country of promise. Even now, when we're floundering, even when the government can't seem to get anything right, I trust that we the people can. That's never stopped being true.
I've lived almost this entire time in New York City - the city that let me be Geetika without translation. It is its own country — dense with difference, impatient, but rarely asking you to explain yourself. I don't know who I'd be if I'd landed in a small town instead of Manhattan. I suspect this ode might’ve read differently.
This is where I feel most like myself. Where I've had three careers instead of one. Where I went back to school at 54, because apparently, here, it's never too late to still be becoming something.
Happy 4th, America. Thank you for letting me stay Geetika.
Sometimes you just have to share something great you read. https://substack.com/@charissetyson/note/c-291221114?r=b5tqf&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
Thank you for this thread, Yana!
I am Isha, I write about self-improvement, life-lessons, personal growth, spirituality. :)
Sharing a note which resonated with a lot of people: Belief is a very important thing!
https://substack.com/@theinnerpilgrimagebyish/note/c-284353230?r=9rvp4&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
https://substack.com/@zainabsemiu/note/c-289863496?r=6pbi8c&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action
I've found my lane on Substack. Now I just need readers to find me. Either way, I am integrating my life's experience and having fun!
https://substack.com/@grandmalove/note/c-288817120
A couple notes following up on my first post titled: "Every Institution Makes Leaders, Not One Teaches You to be Followed"
https://substack.com/@calebgroce/note/p-205083300?r=8lc3c6&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
https://substack.com/@calebgroce/note/c-288712393?r=8lc3c6&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
https://substack.com/@calebgroce/note/c-288710739?r=8lc3c6&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
https://substack.com/@calebgroce/note/c-288753100?r=8lc3c6&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
https://substack.com/@calebgroce/note/c-288707695?r=8lc3c6&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
A way to feel better, faster: https://substack.com/@larryburton1/note/c-273459354
People don’t burn out doing to little:
https://substack.com/@roysolheim/note/c-282461685
A post shouldn’t feel like a buffet:
https://substack.com/@roysolheim/note/c-286060910
Does better writing come from adding more?
https://substack.com/@roysolheim/note/c-286640342
Commented.
And this one’s related to today: https://substack.com/@shamyajones/note/c-287887188?r=5xcdu4&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action
Here’s mine: https://substack.com/@shamyajones/note/c-286526229?r=5xcdu4&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action
Big surprise! This note got 1.4K likes: https://substack.com/@wulfworks/note/c-264962103?r=19b94z&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
Thanks Yana. Here’s one of mine:
https://substack.com/@simplyesther/note/c-286416961
Thank you Yana for this sharing! My Note is about how stress plays out in the healthiest people:
https://substack.com/@huizukauskas/note/c-284388213?r=7q68ll&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
Notes for today so far.
so just to get to know me a little and the other more on the nervous system reset side
https://substack.com/@holisticnursekathleen/note/c-287969861?r=46k81i&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
this about my huge fig tree
https://substack.com/@holisticnursekathleen/note/c-288046954?r=46k81i&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
surprised by turtle
https://substack.com/@holisticnursekathleen/note/c-288057368?r=46k81i&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
OK, this one gets back to business
https://substack.com/@holisticnursekathleen/note/c-287983129?r=46k81i&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
It's a long one but America doesn't turn 250 everyday :)
Happy Birthday America!
I came to this country in 11th grade and never once tried to leave it, not even in my head.
I didn't come here to escape India or to prove it wrong. I came here to make this my home.
I was lucky — I already spoke English, so that particular immigrant tax never applied to me. And for reasons I still can't fully explain, I never felt like I had to shrink myself to belong. I was shy, but not unsure. Every room I walked into, I assumed I was allowed to be in.
I never changed my name. Geetika, since day one. I watched people around me trade their names in for easier ones, and I understood why, and it was never for me. Except once — when I worked at a suicide prevention hotline, where the caller needed my calm, not my name.
The country I came to in 1985 and the country this is in 2026 are not the same country. Neither is the rest of the world, for that matter.
Things have gotten messier, more complicated, harder to explain in one sentence. And yet — this is still the best country in the world.
It is the country of promise. Even now, when we're floundering, even when the government can't seem to get anything right, I trust that we the people can. That's never stopped being true.
I've lived almost this entire time in New York City - the city that let me be Geetika without translation. It is its own country — dense with difference, impatient, but rarely asking you to explain yourself. I don't know who I'd be if I'd landed in a small town instead of Manhattan. I suspect this ode might’ve read differently.
This is where I feel most like myself. Where I've had three careers instead of one. Where I went back to school at 54, because apparently, here, it's never too late to still be becoming something.
Happy 4th, America. Thank you for letting me stay Geetika.
https://substack.com/@allthingsfood/note/c-288211149?r=6lw22&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
Commented.
Happy 4th of July to those that celebrate! Re-reading the book that declares independence from client demands: https://substack.com/profile/103241867-chad-boswell/note/c-288227395?r=1pgtxn&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web
Commented.
I wrote about losing my voice in blogging, then finding my way back to it.
https://substack.com/@ankitabhatiadhawan/note/c-285949767?r=1mth7y&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action
Commented.