Living abroad by yourself is not an easy task at all.
Worsen still is to fit into the
society. That is a real challenge and way harder. I once was an introvert as I feared
speaking to people, because I lacked good communication skills. This was mainly
because I couldn't speak the local lingo, a major language barrier. What made it
even worse was that people found it funny when I spoke English because of my
pronunciation.
Eight years ago, when I first moved to India without my parents, trust me my
fellow friends it was not easy at all. I had to fight for myself and worked extremely
hard to prove others wrong. WORST OF ALL, I was bullied by my own
classmates because of my accent and appearance. It was bad at that time, as I was
young and naive. Of course, I didn't share any of this with anyone, not even my
parents because I didn’t want them to be concerned or my sister because I didn't
want to burden her with my problem when she had her own battles to fight. This
experience hot me like a boulder and made me feel so small, insignificant and lost.
I felt abandoned and ALL ALONE. In this big bad world.
Although I seemed motivated, I WAS NEVER TRULY PRESENT because the
environment altered my mentality. India was a new chapter in my life. Not only
was their culture so completely different from my Thai-Chinese culture but having
to adapt and cope all by myself made it all the more difficult.
At some point, I knew that I required to have positive thoughts. So, I started
believing in myself, to be more open-minded and to put myself in other shoes and
think from their perspective. I mingled around with the local people, learnt the
local language and tried their traditional food so that I could understand the culture
more deeply and connect better. So, I took a step forward for my own well-being
and progress. So by the time it was time for me to bid farewell to India and all my
friends there, I actually got to love my experiences and cherish all the memories I
created there.
Conclusion:- I would like to end this with small thought - ALWAYS TRUST IN
YOURSELF, STAY STRONG and BE WHO YOU ARE.
