The exam of a lifetime.

If you want a reason to love America, chat with Tiffany Laurence for a few minutes, she has quite the list. Today, I had the distinct pleasure of sitting down with Tiffany for my first interview for my blog, Life on the Line. I went in expecting to learn about another country. Instead, I learned a thing or two about my own.

When you first meet her she'll say she's from Scottsdale, Arizona. She has blonde hair and dresses like an average sophomore in college. And without a trace of an accent, you would never guess her first language was far from English.

"I just don't have the accent anymore, if I did it would sound much cooler when I said I was from South Africa," Laurence said.

Laurence's family moved when she was 9-years-old from Pretoria, South Africa to Scottsdale, Arizona for her dad's job. She is now starting her second year at the University of Arizona but has yet to receive her citizenship.

After more than 11 years of paperwork and processes to become a citizen, her and her family's patience is something to mention as well.

But as a legal permanent resident, Laurence goes about life much like a typical young American. She just won't be able to vote in November.

That doesn't stop her from having a political opinion or two, especially when it comes to illegal immigration.

"I don't think is acceptable at all, and I hate how America is trying to solve the problem by handing so many illegal immigrants their citizenship, when my family has been going through it for so long," Laurence said.

It really took me back to hear her explain her feelings and aggravation with the issue of illegal immigration. She never once said that America should just open or shut its doors, but rather that it should be consistent. Talking with her gave me an entirely new perspective. It is unreal the amount of money, time and documentation that it takes for someone to be granted the citizenship I happen to be born into.

After four years in legal permanent resident status, Laurence will take the test to become a citizen.

"I'm really excited…I would like to vote and to call myself a citizen. I would have dual citizenship and just the fact that we've been working at it for 11 years."

Despite frustrations with citizenship, there is one thing that Laurence is relentless about, her appreciation for her life in America.

"In South Africa it is so dangerous and the government is so corrupt I can't even imagine raising my kids there, I just appreciate my life here so much more," Laurence explained.

When asked if she would ever return to live in South Africa, her answer was simple.

"Never."

At the end of her senior year, Tiffany Laurence will take the test of a lifetime, the one to earn her citizenship in the United States. I wish her the best of luck.