Wow! Yesterday morning I received notification that my passport application was approved. Yesterday afternoon I received notification that my passport was printed and would be shipped shortly. Way faster than I had anticipated. This has been a process of hurry up and wait.

I woke up on the second Wednesday of November 2024 and decided I needed to have a plan in case our country went wonky. I intended it as a backup plan to help alleviate my anxiety. So I began researching where I could go in the world. I created a spreadsheet and listed my personal criteria: languages, population density, climate (weather and political), religious diversity, LGBTQ friendliness, human rights, etc. I then researched various countries. I included the UK because my grandmother was born in London (more on that later). If you would like to see the spreadsheet, hit me up and I’ll share with you.

By the end of January 2025 I knew I needed to get serious. My maternal great-grandparents emigrated from Poland. On their way to the United States, they had about an 8 year sojourn in London, where my grandmother was born. Luckily for me, my mother kept my grandmother’s parish registry certificate from her birth, that she inherited along with other interesting family papers when my grandmother died. When I packed up my mother’s apartment, I dumped all of these papers into a large suitcase and brought it home with me. I parked the suitcase in my spare room and never once looked in it. Fortunately, I took the suitcase with me when I moved in 2024. My new place was not very large, so I went through the suitcase and discovered this treasure trove. Remembering that I had this parish registry certificate launched my exploration of gaining UK citizenship.

The parish is no longer in existence. How on earth would I be able to verify my grandmother’s birth in London in 1890 without having this certificate!!!???