Settling In: Getting My Visa

I am a nester by nature. I thrive on feeling settled and knowing that things are taken care of. When things are uncertain I wrestle with being fully invested.

The main thing I found myself struggling with being here was not having my visa taken care of. It’s the one thing that says I am set here for at least three years. Each step we took to figure out my visa seemed to come with it’s very own set backs. I was in a constant state of limbo. Wondering if I should start everything I wanted to or if I needed to wait in order to see how things were going to play out.

We called the immigration office only to find out that it was impossible to accomplish what we needed to do without me leaving the country first. I was told it was impossible to switch my status because my visa had been issued before I entered the country which meant I needed to head to South Korea or some other nearby country in order to get my visa there.

We made the decision to try and get my visa anyways. After heading to Kobe which took roughly 1.5 hours we made our way to the immigration office where they told us it was possible but that we lacked the necessary paperwork.

After four days I had finished all of the paperwork and headed to Kobe alone in order to get my visa. After submitting my paperwork, taking my number and waiting 2 hours I was called up to the desk. I was ready for them to hand me my visa and head out but that’s not what happened. They called me up to tell me that they weren’t going to be able to issue my visa because of the same reasons they had given me previously.

At this point I was determined. There was no way I was going to leave that office without my visa in hand. For an hour I talked to official after official explaining why I couldn’t get my visa beforehand and how I needed it now.  I tried everything. They sent me away from the desk countless times in order to talk to someone higher then them.

Finally I sat down and said “Jesus you know me and my heart, you know what I need in order to be settled. In order for me to fully be present I need this to be finished. I will leave the country to get the visa if that’s the only way but I would really prefer to not have to do that. If there is another way, then please make it happen”

That wasn’t the first time I had prayed for favor in this process, in fact my entire time here has felt like one gigantic prayer. But, this one was clear. I needed a solution and I needed it now. After I prayed that I felt complete peace. Yes getting my visa now would be convenient and much more cost effective then going to another country but either way God was in it. It was clear I was getting my visa whether it was now or later.

When they called me up to the desk again I had decided to accept whatever I would need to do in order to get it. To my shock they said they had decided to accept my visa, all I had to do was write down why I wasn’t able to obtain it prior to this moment, sign it and I would be on my way.

I didn’t fully believe it was real until I had my residency card in hand and was walking out of the building. It was done. I am here. I felt a shift in myself. I went from a place of uncertainty to one of complete clarity. I wasn’t going to be leaving this place anytime soon. It was such a small thing to have happened yet it was monumental to me.

My time here has been completely different then I had imagined but it has been so good. I have fought high highs and low lows. Culture shock has taken it’s toll on me but I know I am here for a reason. I love this country and it’s people and I am ready to fully be here.