Last
year,
after
an
epiphany
during
one
of
my
birding
walks,
I
decided
to
implement
“love”
as
an
action
item
in
my
life.
The
pandemic
lockdowns
and
the
chaos
caused
by
it
all
around
me
made
me
realize
I
can’t
change
the
world,
but
I
can
try
to
change
myself.
I
wanted
to
stress
less,
withstand
challenges
better,
be
a
better
mother
to
my
children,
and
be
a
better
lawyer
for
my
clients.
And
so,
an
experiment
began.
I
would
love
more.
I
planned
to
treat
each
action
item
with
more
love
in
my
heart
—
whether
it
is
writing
checks
to
pay
bills,
writing
difficult
briefs
and
letters
on
behalf
of
my
clients
in
the
ever-evolving
complexities
that
U.S.
immigration
laws
create,
and
just
about
everything
else
I
must
do
as
a
mother,
lawyer,
employer,
business
owner,
and
active
community
member.
I
didn’t
expect
anything
in
return
except
my
personal
well-being.
In
this
experiment,
I
learned
that,
like
meditation,
the
“action”
of
“love”
is
a
practice.
It
doesn’t
happen
in
one
day.
You
must
keep
remembering
to
do
so,
especially
when
someone
or
something
triggers
negative
emotions
like
anxiety,
stress,
fear,
or
anger.
When
it
came
to
my
cases,
each
time
challenges
flowed
out
of
the
files,
I
reminded
myself
to
love
the
file
and
the
client
behind
it
more
so
I
could
let
love
energize
the
work
needed
for
the
case.
For
example,
one
of
my
clients,
an
older
retired
U.S.
citizen,
and
his
wife
from
Southeast
Asia,
applied
for
a
marriage-based
adjustment
green
card
application,
pro
se
several
months
before
the
pandemic
began.
The
wife
received
permission
to
travel
abroad,
also
known
as
“advanced
parole.”
She
left
the
U.S.
with
the
intention
to
return
in
less
than
four
weeks.
However,
during
her
trip,
the
whole
world
went
into
lockdown.
She
immediately
got
stuck.
She
couldn’t
return
because
of
a
host
of
COVID-19
restrictions,
including
grounded
flights,
closed
borders,
etc.
During
that
time,
her
advance
parole
expired,
which
was
not
renewable
from
outside
the
U.S.
As
a
result
of
her
not
being
able
to
reenter
the
U.S.
and
attend
the
interview
set
in
her
case,
the
green
card
application
was
denied.
The
case
was
dead,
and
she
would
have
to
start
again.
But
this
time,
she
would
have
to
remain
outside
for
the
next
three
to
four
years
that
the
case
would
need
to
process.
I
was
retained
to
see
if
there
was
any
way
out
of
this
hopeless
situation.
Naturally,
this
couple
was
anxious
and
frustrated
at
this
predicament.
Life
finally
brought
them
love,
and
suddenly
pandemic
restrictions
separated
them.
Their
stress
was
palpable
facing
such
an
impossible
and
unjust
situation.
It
was
a
daunting
challenge,
but
I
felt
compelled
to
take
it
on,
seeing
the
love
they
had
for
each
other,
and
the
sadness
brought
on
by
the
forced
separation.
We
appealed
the
case.
Preparing
for
the
appeal
was
an
arduous
task
as
we
had
to
gather
significant
evidence
about
why
the
client
could
not
return
—
such
as
evidence
of
government
announcements
of
grounded
flights,
borders
closed,
and
unavailability
of
vaccines
—
to
create
a
chronology
of
events
through
the
evidence.
It
was
storytelling
and
so
much
more.
I
don’t
typically
file
appeals
since
they
go
into
a
procedural
black
hole;
however,
in
this
instance,
we
had
to
because,
without
a
reopened
case,
the
client
could
not
get
a
new
advance
parole.
To
my
pleasant
surprise
and
great
relief,
the
appeal
was
granted.
Reopening
the
case
allowed
us
to
renew
her
advanced
parole.
A
few
months
ago,
she
was
able
to
reenter
the
United
States.
And
just
before
Christmas
2022,
the
couple
received
their
present
—
a
green
card
in
her
hands.
It
was
a
sweet
victory,
for
sure.
This
was
one
of
my
most
significant
victories
to
date
because
of
its
unprecedented
nature
—
feeling
my
way
through
each
step,
not
knowing
how
the
next
step
would
look.
I
wasn’t
sure
we
would
be
able
to
overcome
some
of
the
challenges
that
came
along
the
way.
But
with
my
new
mantra,
“embrace
the
challenge
with
love
and
discharge
the
responsibility
with
love,”
I
give
at
least
partial
credit
to
my
extra
injection
of
love
to
this
success.
What
is
truly
magical,
though,
is
that
while
I
was
intentionally
and
actively
adding
love
to
everything
I
was
doing,
I
didn’t
realize
love
was
coming
back
to
me.
It
took
a
while
to
notice
it.
Our
clients,
for
the
most
part,
were
able
to
get
calmer
in
their
stressful
situations.
It
helped
them
trust
the
universe
and
the
issues
that
were
out
of
their
control.
On
many
occasions,
perhaps
more
than
any
previous
year,
I
laughed
with
my
clients
and
cried
with
them
too.
The
connections
felt
stronger.
When
I
discussed
some
of
my
challenges
with
my
clients,
I
could
feel
their
love
and
kindness
through
their
emails
and
voices.
I
was
touched
and
overwhelmed
by
many
of
these
encounters.
And
when
it
comes
to
nature
—
the
birds,
the
squirrels,
the
deer,
and
other
wildlife
—
I
felt
they
saw
me!
They
looked
at
me
and
posed
for
me.
I
felt
their
love.
In
sum,
I
learned
in
2022
that
what
you
put
out
in
the
world
will
return
to
you
in
spades.
Love
is
indeed
a
boomerang.
Tahmina
Watson is
the
founding
attorney
of Watson
Immigration
Law in
Seattle,
where
she
practices
US
immigration
law
focusing
on
business
immigration.
She
has
been
blogging
about
immigration
law
since
2008
and
has
written
numerous
articles
in
many
publications.
She
is
the
author
of Legal
Heroes
in
the
Trump
Era:
Be
Inspired.
Expand
Your
Impact.
Change the
World and The
Startup
Visa:
Key
to
Job
Growth
and
Economic
Prosperity
in
America. She
is
also
the
founder
of
The
Washington
Immigrant
Defense
Network
(WIDEN),
which
funds
and
facilitates
legal
representation
in
the
immigration
courtroom,
and
co-founder
of Airport
Lawyers,
which
provided
critical
services
during
the
early
travel
bans.
Tahmina
is
regularly
quoted
in
the
media
and
is
the
host
of
the
podcast Tahmina
Talks
Immigration.
She
is
a
Puget
Sound
Business
Journal
2020
Women
of
Influence
honoree.
Business
Insider recently
named
her
as
one
of
the
top
immigration
attorneys
in
the
U.S.
that
help
tech
startups.
You
can
reach
her
by
email
at tahmina@watsonimmigrationlaw.com,
connect
with
her
on
LinkedIn or
follow
her
on
Twitter
at
@tahminawatson.