Liem and his family are like so many other colonist. They are on the ship heading to North America to have a better life than the one that they had in their home country. Liem and the family are packed into a corner of the hot and musty ship. The ships has at least 200 other people including the crew and they are all packed into the ship like a can of sardines. The voyage to their new home would take them about two and a half months to arrive. During this voyage the Thomas family would see women dying during child birth, young children dying of different childhood diseases and they would be a witness to all of the deceased being cast overboard during this voyage. Liem thought that it was unsanitary to go months without being cleaned. He was also puzzled that there was no privacy on the ship, but there was nothing that could be done. They were on their way to a greater life and there was no turning around. During the trip to America, Liem met another young man who was the same age as he was, the young man told Liem that his name was Peter. Over the next month Liem and Peter became the best of friends. Their families also became close, because they were all sitting in the same area of the ship. During the 2nd month of the trip, Peter’s father became very ill and eventually he passed away from the illness. This was Liem’s first time ever experiencing death of anyone that he knew. After witnessing what happened to Peter’s father, it made Liem’s father more cautious and he made sure to keep his family way from Peter’s family for fear of his family catching dysentery and all of the family perishing before they made it to the new country.

The Thomas family has settled in a small town in Pennsylvania. Since the family were farmers in the old country, Mr. Thomas decided that the family should also farm in the new country. The family have set up a home that is made of wood and mud. There were only three rooms for the entire home. There was one large room that was used for the kitchen and visiting room, the second room was for all four of the children to share and the last room was for Mr. and Mrs. Thomas. There was a fireplace in the home and that was to heat the whole home during the winter months. Although Liem was having to share a very small bedroom and a small bed with his three older brothers. He feels happy to be in the new country. Life on the farm for Liem gets to be hectic at time. Liem is woken up at the crowing of the rooster. He knew that it was time to get up, have a bowl of corn mush and an apple. By the time he is finished with his breakfast it was time to head to the field. The crop that the Thomas family grows is wheat. On top of harvesting the wheat. Liem is responsible for gathering all of the eggs that their chickens lay, clean the eggs and then he has to clean the chicken coop. One of the many other tast that Liem is responsible for is helping his father milk the five cows that they have on the farm. When the day is done with the farming, Liem has to come in and have his dinner with the family. Once dinner is finished, he gets cleaned up and then he has to work on his studies with his mother. After the lesson is done, Liem is allowed to go to bed. The rooster comes a calling early.

Liem is preparing to leave his family to do an apprenticeship as a printer in the city of Philadelphia. Liem’s three older brothers have their own families now and they live not too far from the family home and farm. They all gather at the parent’s home to see Liem off. Mrs. Thomas wants for Liem to stay with all of the family, but Mr. Thomas knows that this apprenticeship will lead to a wonderful job for Liem. Mr. Thomas whistles and nudges for Liem to hop into the wagon, they have a long ride ahead of them. During the ride Liem had a lot of time to think about what the future holds for him. He is excited to be leaving home, but at the same time he is a little scared and worried, because this is his first time away from home and not having any family with him or around him. Liem and Mr. Thomas arrive in Philadelphia bright and early on a Friday morning. Mr. Browning the printer who is going to oversee Liem’s apprenticeship is standing in the doorway of the print shop waiting to greet them. Mr. Thomas grabs Liem’s bag and they walk up to greet Mr. Browning. They shake hands and walk into the print shop. Time goes by and Mr. Browning assures Mr. Thomas that Liem is in good hands. He also tells Mr. Thomas that he should go ahead and get a start back home, because it was getting late and it would be dark soon. Mr. Browning helps Liem settle into the room that will be his very own, it’s in the very back of the print shop. Liem didn’t know what to think about having a room to himself. He has always had to share a room with his older brothers. He will spend the next three years learning his new trade.

Liam has been busy learning the printing business in Philadelphia. It is hard work. He is very excited to be learning a trade. His day starts at about 7am and can last until 7pm sometimes. Duties are varied. Some days Mr. Browning has Liam setting type while other days he is sent out to gather supplies of ink and paper that will be needed in order to accomplish the printing jobs that the shop will be receiving. Mr. Brown is pleased with his performance so far.
In his spare time, when he has any, Liam goes to the local tavern to hear about the latest gossip. He has been hearing lately about what would be a treasonous idea to most Englishman. But like most of the people he knows in Philadelphia, he has been feeling more independent while still having a kind fondness for king and country. But he has also the feeling that he is part of something different and exciting. The people he has been listening to are beginning to wonder out loud how well the colony could prosper if it was independent from the crown.
His apprenticeship has been going well. Soon he will be trusted enough to start attempting and completing printing jobs on his own from start to finish. Time passes and Liam shows that he is very competent and proficient in perform all of the jobs for which he is presented. Mr. Browning is so impressed with his work that he offers Liam a position in his printing business as a junior printer. Very happy with the news Liam gladly accepts the position for which he is offered. Liam reflects on his life so far, and knows how fortunate he is to be doing what he now been trained to do and is looking forward to be the best printer that he can be in the years to come.