I must have been about ten years old when I read the United States Citizenship Test questions for the first time.

The test was not for me, I was born in the United States and that made me a citizen.

In grade school, I learned who George Washington was and what the Declaration of Independence meant.

My mother and one of her friends were interested in becoming citizens. I found myself reading off the questions and listening as they tried to answer English.

We'd gather in the living room of our old home in Seattle's Chinatown, just myself, my mother and her closest friend.

"Who was the first president of the United States?," I asked.

My mother would respond right away "Georgie Washington."

It didn't seem odd to be teaching this to grown adults. As immigrants to this country, the Chinese of that generation were used to letting their American born children interpret for them when they could not understand something.

I don't remember my mother ever taking the citizenship test. My father died a few years later and my mother was left to raise four children.

For 35 years, she operated the Re-New Cleaners on Maynard Avenue.

Hers was a typical immigrant's experience, working six days a week, 12 hours a day while saving to buy a house and children's college education. This put the citizenship test on hold.

She used to boast about attending the old Broadway School to learn English for only three days before quitting to run the laundry.

My mother's English was not that great. She spoke well enough to communicate with her customers, many of them were non-Chinese.

America was built by immigrants from all over the world.

Ballard is no different. Swedish immigrants began coming to the Pacific Northwest in 1883.

According to the Nordic Heritage Museum, the Swedish population was several thousand in 1889. By 1910 it had grown to 32,000 and by 1930 it was 77,000.

They came for the same reasons that other Europeans, Asians and others from around the world did. They were looking to better their lives. Swedish immigration has left a wonderful history and legacy here in Ballard, where many cultural groups celebrate their rich heritage.

We are fortunate to live in a multi-cultural society and there's plenty to celebrate about diversity. Immigration makes this possible.