I’ve written two books and countless columns on migration and the politics of “belonging” — and I still sometimes feel like I’ll never fully understand the complex, challenging, sometimes lonely and almost always deeply hopeful process of leaving everything you know behind for the promise of something better.

Immigration isn’t and never has been one size fits all. One’s integration can vary considerably based on individual motives, personality, expectations, tolerance for change, ease of language acquisition, ties to motherland and ability to adapt to a new reality.

How newcomers are perceived and welcomed by their new society and how quickly they’re given essential integration tools (think francization in Quebec!) also are key in their successful immigration.

Immigrants are not a monolith. They’re unique human beings who shouldn’t be expected to seamlessly fit into clichéd or antiquated notions of what makes a Quebecer or Canadian or how they’re expected to behave, talk, look or think.

Neither are immigrants all that different from the rest of the population. We all pretty much want the same things:........

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