|
|
|
GRRC Annual Scholarship Program Essays click on name to go to the essay
________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Though leaving West Palm Beach, Florida, my home of fifteen years, was difficult, I am so glad that I moved to Richmond. I had lived in West Palm Beach and attended the same church for my whole life, and had attended the same school since pre-kindergarten. I was very actively involved in both my school and church, and would never have wished to live anywhere else. My dad served as the Pastor of Missions and Community Outreach at my church, First Baptist Church of West Palm Beach, and had worked there as long as I could remember. During my freshman year in high school, the possibility of my family moving to Richmond became very likely and, in the summer after my freshman year, my dad took a job with the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. I was very excited that my dad had been given this opportunity, but was sad that I would have to leave the only home I had ever known to move to Richmond, Virginia. It was decided that we would make the transition in August so my family and I began preparing to move. The most difficult part about leaving West Palm Beach was saying goodbye to family and friends that I had grown up with. I had never had to say goodbye like this before and it was definitely a struggle for me. Though I knew that these loved ones would be no more than one phone call away, I also knew that my relationship with each of them could never be the same again because of the increased physical distance between us. After I said goodbye to my family, friends, and neighbors, my feelings began to change. Though I was sad to leave, I began to get very excited about the change and even saw my family’s relocation as an adventure. I have always enjoyed meeting new people and was excited to meet many new people in Richmond. For the first time in my life, I would attend a public school. This was quite an adjustment from the private school I had attended for eleven years where there were only a little over one hundred students per grade. At Godwin high school, I would be a member of a class of almost five hundred students. This was very exciting to me. I looked forward to living in a new house and getting to explore a new city, but most of all I looked forward to getting to see a change in seasons. Though so many who live here take the change in seasons for granted, I was thrilled to get to live in a place where I would experience the leaves changing in fall and the snow in winter, instead of year-round warm weather. My older brother, Justin, and I grew closer when we moved to Richmond. We had always been very close, but when we moved to Richmond and didn’t really know anyone else, our friendship grew. We began spending more time together and encouraged each other to get involved in activities here in Richmond. If it weren’t for the encouragement of my brother, as well as that of my parents, I know I would never be as involved as I was today. Singing has always been my passion. When leaving Florida, I left a place where directors and musicians knew my voice and gave me numerous opportunities to sing and perform what I loved to do most. My greatest fear in moving to Richmond was having to start afresh musically. I had had so many incredible opportunities to sing in Florida and was afraid that I would lose all of those opportunities when I moved to Richmond. Justin and my parents encouraged me to audition for musical groups at Godwin and our new church. Though I was scared to go and audition in a place where no one knew me, something I had never really experienced before, I did and began getting opportunities to sing in Richmond. I quickly became actively involved in the choral department at school and music at church. I became an active member of my church’s youth group and became involved in activities at Godwin. If I had the opportunity to live my life again and change anything in my past, I would never even consider staying in Florida. The move to Richmond has helped me grow so much in every way. I learned what it was like to be the “new kid” and can now understand and relate to people I meet who are new to Richmond. I know what they’re going through and can encourage them by telling them all I experienced when I moved here and the wonderful opportunities I’ve had since. I have also become a stronger student. Godwin has been a more academically challenging school than the one I attended in Florida. I have learned better critical thinking skills and have enjoyed taking Honors and Advanced Placement classed to challenge me further. I have also grown vocally since I moved here. I have been given more opportunities than I ever could have wished for. I have learned so much from Godwin’s choir teacher, Ms. Matthews, and have so enjoyed the opportunities to participate in All-District and All-Virginia choirs. I have had the opportunity to hold more leadership positions and have learned so much from all of these experiences. I would never tell anyone that my family’s move to Richmond was easy for me, but it has been so rewarding. I would encourage any teenager preparing to relocate to see the change as an adventure. It’s impossible to imagine what your new home can hold for you, but it is not fair to assume that it has nothing to offer. I know from experience that your relocation to another place can only be as positive as you allow it to be. You must be willing to make new friends, but you can’t expect those you meet to seek you out. You must be the friend that you wish others to be to you. Never be afraid to introduce yourself. Be bold and confident. Though life as you know it may seem to be over, don’t give up your dreams. Keep working toward accomplishing your goals and take advantage of every opportunity to continue doing what you love in your new home. You just might find that the opportunities you receive will be better than you could ever have imagined, but you must be willing to give them a chance!
When my dad told me that he found another job, I could not believe what I heard. Impossible, we are moving again. Having emigrated from Saint Petersburg, Russia the summer after my 8th grade, I had barely had enough time to get used to America in Virginia Beach. Now, I had to move again—this time to Richmond, VA—right in the middle of my sophomore year! At first, I got really angry at my parents. I thought that they did not care about me and my feelings. I did not want to leave Virginia Beach because this city became my home. I made many friends at Kempsville—the school I went to. Also, having experienced 14 years of harsh Russian winters, I came to love and enjoy Virginia Beach’s warm weather and beautiful beach, to which I and some of my friends went together almost every day. Also, while Saint Petersburg is a huge city similar to Paris or New York, Virginia Beach is a small town in comparison. It took me two years to get accustomed to my new surroundings and moving to another place was about the last thing I wanted to do. Moving to Richmond was like moving to something more similar to Saint Petersburg than Virginia Beach, but still not quite the same. While Richmond is a large city—a capital of Virginia—the place where I moved to is six miles away from downtown. This is why my neighborhood looked nothing like that of a big city. However, in spite of its different appearance, Richmond instilled in me a peculiar sense of tranquility. It was January, and it snowed when I moved to my new house. As I jogged on the snowy roads for the first time, I looked around me and wondered if Richmond could be more to me than a fresh pile of problems. The leafless trees and whitened grass of the quiet neighborhood seemed to be full of opportunities that my new life was about to bring. The night before the first day at my new school was reminiscent of the one which I had two years ago at Virginia Beach. I was so scared that I did not fall asleep until 3 o’clock. Moreover, two hours after I fell asleep, I woke up from a nightmare in which I was chased by hundreds of students whom I had never met before. I was so afraid to go to a new school where I knew absolutely nobody that I still vividly remember that dream today. Even my experience of moving earlier from Russia did not make me feel any better. Back then, everybody had a transition: from middle school to high school. This time, I felt as if I was intruding in an already formed system. When I came to J.R. Tucker, right at the beginning of the second semester, it took me a while to find my classroom because of this school’s unusual campus design. When I came into my Algebra II class, students obviously knew each other well and had already formed groups of friends. So, I just introduced myself to the class and sat in the open seat close to the window. Immediately, several students approached me, and we started a conversation. We talked about Virginia Beach, Russia, sports and hundreds of other random things. After this, I started feeling much more at ease. After another class, the dreadful lunchtime came. As I entered the cafeteria, I started searching rapidly for the faces which I had seen earlier that day. Luckily, I found those guys from my math class and sat with them. This is how I overcame the initial social hurdles that I feared the most. I met most of my good friends when I joined Tucker’s Outdoor Track Team. That year, Track Team was exceptional. It featured such all-time stars as Michael Chapa, Thum Mithuang and Mason McElroy. Although it is those three who got immense publicity, every member of the team worked hard, thereby making winning the state championship a reality. Team spirit was the key. Learning from examples, I pushed myself harder and harder every workout, achieving personal bests almost every race. So, as I started eating lunch and hanging out with my teammates, I became less and less of a stranger to my new school. Even though my social life seemed to go fine, I encountered a number of unexpected educational obstacles. First, my schedule had to be totally redone because Tucker did not offer many of the classes that Kempsville did. Second, my class rank at Tucker was markedly lower than at Kempsville because unlike Kempsville, Tucker offers almost all classes as honors. Moreover, honors classes at Tucker add .17 to one’s GPA comparing to only .07 at Kempsville. This news was truly upsetting because my straight A’s which I earned with extra effort as a foreign-born student were now much less valuable on my transcript! In spite of the above mentioned difficulties, I soon came to appreciate Tucker’s educational system. My biology teacher at Tucker taught her subject in the most exciting way possible. Mrs. Svor always referred to real-world examples of biological phenomena, and her iguana, placed in a cage in the back of the classroom, always served as an excellent illustration. It is this biology class that made me consider becoming a doctor when I grow up. In order to learn what a field of medicine is like, I started looking for some programs I could participate in. My community service advisor at school was willing to help me. It is because of his assistance that I found out about Parham Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center nursing home. I still volunteer there today, having volunteered for over two years. There, I organize and supervise activities such as bingos, games, concerts and food socials. Also, I visit residents one-on-one. The result of my work is a great enhancement of all residents’ well beings, as I see it every day from their smiles and “thank you’s.” Volunteering at Parham made me certain that I want to become a physician. During my junior year, I joined the ecology, world affairs, and French clubs in addition to doing cross-country and badminton. I soon learned that clubs at Tucker are fun and excellent for making friends. At French club, ever French holiday is a huge party. There, students, many of whom attend the Immersion French Center, are always interested in learning about French culture and traditions. At ecology club, we do not just debate about how to improve our environment; we take steps to do so. Last year, about a dozen of us planted trees and flowers and put several posters about global warming all around the school. And in world affairs club, our debates about Iraq, third-world countries and problems facing the U.S. are always heated because almost everyone participates in the discussions. Also, the sponsor, Mrs. Sward is such a good public speaker and her knowledge of Latin America and Middle East is so deep that it is a great learning experience to just listen to what she has to say. As I took all honors or AP classes during my junior and senior years (except Driver’s Ed), my GPA improved and my class rank went back up to where it was at Kempsville. Today, I still participate in world affair and French club, play tennis, badminton and chess and volunteer at a nursing home. Also, I recently found a job at Panera Bread. Although I’ve made other friends since my sophomore year, my best friends are still those guys with whom I went to the track team back in 10th grade. I spend my free time going to the movies and basketball games. Relocation to a new place of living is not as terrifying and destructive experience as it seems to be to most teenagers who are preparing to relocate. While I thought that my life was over as I was driving on a highway from Virginia Beach to Richmond, I now see that my new home was so full of opportunities that moving here was not awful after all. I would like to say to those teenagers who are about to move that while you think that you are losing everything you are leaving behind, nothing can be further from the truth. I still keep in touch with my close friends at Kempsville. I hang out with them when I go to the beach on some weekends or during the summer. Moving to another place does not mean losing. It only means gaining. As a teenager preparing to live in another city, you should be open and friendly with the new people you meet. Some of your classmates will definitely be willing to be your friends. Cheer up and know that your experience of relocation will surely help you later in life. Think about how much easier and less stressful it’s going to be for you to go to college after your senior year!
Before coming to the United States my family was living in Afghanistan. Our lives were very difficult during the war. My dad and older brother were killed during the war. Everyone lost something during the war. My brother and I were little and we did not know what was going on. My mom locked my brother and me inside and we did not even see what happened to my dad and my older brother. I do not remember how the day passed, but it was the longest day of my life. We were brought to settle in Colorado Springs. Good Samaritans helped us obtain government services. I was only fifteen years old and my brother eighteen. My mother had a daunting task, with heart problems and other illnesses with years of stress, and trying to make a life in a new country with a new language. We managed to get by with only my 18-year old brother’s source of our income. But still, we were trying to live a normal life. When we first arrived in Colorado Springs in 2003 I started grade nine. I had never been to school before because of the condition in Afghanistan. It was really hard for me. I couldn’t speak English at all. My school grades were really bad, but I had made some friends. I took ESL classes which is classes for students who speak English as a second language. It helped me a lot. I started getting good grades and took classes that I really liked in 10th grade. I became familiar with American cultures and all the other things. After a week in school trying to make friends I asked a girl what grade she was she said she was a senior. I asked her, “What is a senior”. She laughed at me. Now when ever I remember this I laugh too. While living in Colorado Springs something happened to me and my life changed. I remember the exact time and the date. It was July 11, Sunday, at 10:00 a.m. when my brother and I went to Wal-Mart to buy a school bag for me. It was very warm outside and it took us one hour to come back. When we came back, we knocked at the door so my mom could open the door for us, as always, but this time we waited for two minutes. My brother and I wondered why she did not come. At that moment, the door opened and I greeted my mom but she was not looking normal to me. The right side of her face was very weak and she could not speak. She was trying to walk, but her right leg and hand were not working normally. I got very scared and asked her what happened but she could not speak and my brother told me to call 911. I called them, crying, that something was wrong with my mom. Three ambulances came and took her to the hospital. There were all of these tubes that they put on her and they examined her every 15 seconds. I went with her and my brother followed us. They didn’t let me in the emergency room because I was not an adult. I could see everything that was going on in the room. Waiting in the hospital was my second longest day of my life. A nurse came and took us inside my mom’s room and I saw my mom, sleeping in her bed. I had been crying for almost 3 hours. She saw us and started talking. I was relieved. The nurse told us that she had a stroke but fortunately we got to the hospital on time and it didn’t cause a lot of damage to her brain. The nurse said that my mom would have to stay for 3 days before going home. I was with her the whole three nights. I couldn’t go to sleep during the night. But I was happy that my mom was doing okay. On the 3rd day the doctor told us that she could go home. He started talking about some of the symptoms that my mom was having. He said that it was really hard for her now to breathe. It would be a good idea if she was living on the east coast because of the sea level. Where we were living then made it hard for her to breathe because of the mountains and the level of oxygen. My brother and I listened to the doctor and said okay we will do something to help my mom. My mom was released from the hospital and we went home. I called the doctor the next day and talked about the situation. He asked me if any of our family members were living on the east coast and I told him that one of my mom’s cousins was living in Richmond, Virginia. He said that we should send my mom to their house to live for a while until she got better. At dinner we talked about it and the next morning we decided that we would move to Richmond, Virginia. I did not like the idea of moving, for as long as I can remember, I’ve been moving from country to country, learning new cultures and creating new lifestyles. We moved to Richmond, VA in July 2006. I registered myself at Lee Davis High School. August passed and September came and my first day of school. I very was nervous. I didn’t know where to go, where my classes were and what lunch block I had. Most importantly, I had to eat lunch alone with no friends. All of this made me more nervous. At my second block I met a girl who is now my best friend. Luckily she had the same lunch as I had and she showed me all of my classes. Everyday of school I started to make new friends and I got less nervous each day. I started joining to clubs. Now I am in National Honor Society. But still I miss my friends from Colorado, the snow and my school. I have a lot of things to catch up, now that I just turned eighteen. I demonstrated maturity and responsibility by taking care of all family matters – my mom’s medical requirements, communication, paper work, and household chores. After my homework and projects, I have very little free time to enjoy my teenage years. With my relocation I allowed myself to be open to new ideas and wonderful opportunities. I got accepted to VCU. I am definitely not scared or nervous about it because I have already passed those stages. Now my mom is doing great she is exercising and eating healthy. My advice for any teenager relocating to a new city, country or a state would be to keep your head up and have a positive attitude no matter who you are or where you came from. Believe in yourself and stay focused on your goals and get involved with sports or other extra-curricular activities. This will help you meet people and keep your mind off of the things you miss. It all needs time and as time passes by things will get better.
My dad had been working as a statistician for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company for almost 20 years when they decided to layoff 40% of its workforce and nearly two thirds of his particular department, Research and Development. Unfortunately, my dad did not survive the layoffs. He sent his resume to several different companies after being laid off, including Philip Morris USA in Richmond. They extended him a job offer and he decided to accept it, meaning that my family would have to relocate from Winston Salem, NC to Richmond, VA. One of the hardest moments of my life was the tearful goodbye between me and my best friends in North Carolina the night before I moved. I had grown up with these girls; we had been inseparable for the past 5 or 6 years and I couldn’t even begin to imagine what kind of people I would meet in Richmond, much less become friends with. Fearing the worst, I had nightmares for weeks before my first day of school, imagining myself having to eat lunch alone in the bathroom and people staring at me as I walked into a storage classroom for the first time. Fortunately, reality was not nearly as bad as the situation that my mind had created. I met an incredibly friendly group of girls in one of my first classes of school day and, to my relief, they invited me to sit with them at lunch. I was very shy at first but as the weeks passed, I grew more and more comfortable with my new friends and got to know a lot of different people. Two years later, the girls that I ate lunch with on my first day of school are still my best friends here in Richmond and I am very grateful to them for their quick acceptance of me, though I have stayed in close contact with my friends back in North Carolina and visit them almost every month. Immediately following the move, my family had a very strange living situation. My dad began working at Philip Morris USA in December, 2003 and I went ahead and came to Richmond in January, 2004 so that I could start school at Deep Run in the time for the beginning of the 2nd semester of my sophomore year. My dad and I lived in an apartment while my mom and little brother stayed in Winston-Salem as they tried to sell our old house and find a new house in Richmond. Because it ended up taking much longer than expected for my mom to get the house on the market and find a buyer, my dad and I lived alone in the apartment for over 6 months. Since he had really long working hours and he commuted back to North Caroline to be with my mom every weekend, I was handed many responsibilities including the duties of waking myself up and getting ready for school, making my own lunch, going grocery shopping, cooking dinner, and cleaning the apartment for those 6 months. All of these things were piled on top of playing soccer for my school team and trying to keep up with all of my schoolwork. Though it was very stressful and a lot of responsibility for a 16-year-old, I matured a lot in those 6 months of essentially living alone. My biggest piece of advice for other students who have to move in the middle of their high school career is to go into the experience with a positive attitude and an open mind. Right after my parents broke the news that I would be leaving the home and city that I had lived in for my entire life, I was angry and frustrated. I didn’t know how to react and I had no idea how to tell my best friends that I was abandoning them halfway through high school. I blamed my parents that I was not the ideal situation for them either. My dad obviously did not choose to job and find one in a completely different state and I know that my mom did not want to leave all of her friends behind. Another thing that my family did that helped me in the transition between North Carolina to Virginia was visiting high schools. My family and I visited six different high schools in the area around Philip Morris and they let me decide which one that I wanted to attend. We were then going to buy a house in the neighbor near the school. Deep Rum was the last school that I visited but I knew immediately it was the school that I wanted to attend. It was very similar to Mount Tabor, the high school I had attended In NC, and the students and faculty were much friendlier than at the other schools that I visited. Being able to choose what school that I went to made me feel like I had more control over situation, and I felt much more comfortable on the first day of school since I had already toured the school and gotten to know some of the faculty. Looking back, the needless worrying and anxiety before moving were for absolutely no reason and were a huge waste of time. Like the quote by Leo Buscaglia, “worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow, it only saps today of its joy.” Instead of using up my last days in North Caroline dreading what was in come, it would have been much more productive to have just enjoyed the time with my friends and spent as much time as possible with them. I have also realized that everything does not happen for a reason. Many things that I’ve accomplished and memories that I’ve made would not have happened if I had stayed in North Carolina. For example, I have recently been accepted early decision to the University of Virginia, which will be attended in the fall. Receiving in-state tuition to on of the best universities in the country would not be possible if I had not moved to Richmond. Another achievement I have had is my continued academic and athletic success. I have managed to get straight A’s throughout high school while taking mostly honors and AP classes and participating in 10 seasons of Varsity sports throughout my four years in high school. Also, I would not have met half of the people that are important to me if I hadn’t come to Virginia. My friends here have helped to shape me into the person that I am toady. I love it here in Richmond and have never been happier. Though it is still hard to look at old pictures and reminisce about all of my favorite memories when I go back to visit my friends in North Carolina, I am always glad to come home to Richmond, for I have made countless memories here as well. One of the advantage that I have over many of my classmates as we prepare for the nest big step in out lives is that I have already faced a similar situation. I am not nervous about going to college without knowing many people. I have survived it once and come out a much better and more mature person, confident in my ability to adapt to any situation when needed.
Sang Kim My New Home My watch read 7:10 a.m. as I walked into the deserted classroom. I slowly dragged myself to the back of the room, took the last seat and tried to relax. It was so silent that the only sounds I could hear were the “tick, tick” of my watch and rapid in and out of my unsteady breathing. I took a deep breath to calm myself down and tired not be so nervous. It had been a couple days since I transferred to Manchester High School, and still, no one had yet talked to me. As I sat in my seat, one thought went through my head; “I want to go home.” I felt the urge to run out of the school and go home and not the home where I was currently staying, but my real home half-way around in the world I transferred from my school in South Korea to my new high school in Virginia in the middle of ninth grade. Even though I was near fluent in speaking English, no one talked to me and I always tried desperately to swallow my tears of loneliness. During lunch periods, I would be in small corner of the school library instead of in the cafeteria eating lunch. I did not want to eat lunch alone so I stayed in the library and looked at pictures of my friends in Korea while pretending to read a book. Every afternoon when I came home, I got on my knees and begged my mom, “Please Mom! Let’s go back home!” I wanted to go back to Korea and all my friends, where I felt as if I was a part or something special. However, my mom refused to listen to my desperate pleas, and always said that we had moved to America because it was the best for me. I was never able to understand why my mom would say that. Before I went to sleep I always asked myself, ‘How in the world is moving here supposed to be the best for me when I no longer have any friends and I feel so miserable and sad?’. I never came up with any good answers to my questions and I fell asleep crying every night. I often looked through my pictures I had brought with me from Korea. One picture of me and my three best friends in Korea was my favorite picture to look at. All four of us had out school uniforms on and we were leaving school after one of the four major exams we had to take every year. We had agreed to go out that night and have a great time considering we had only studied for exams for the past three weeks. I looked at my face and I could see how happy I was. I wanted to smile like I smiled in that picture but I could not because none of my friends were next to me. I was alone. I really did miss being with my friends. I missed walking to school with my friends at night and playing soccer on the soccer field. I missed throwing surprise birthday parties for each other. My friends had thrown me a surprise farewell party on my last day in Korea and I remember almost crying in front of my friends. When my last friend gave me a goodbye hug, both of us realized we had tears rolling down out cheeks but we tried to act like men and never mentioned anything about our tears. Now, I was all alone and my tears would not stop dripping down my face. As I sat in the classroom that day, two boys walked in, joking and playfully shoving each other. I found myself wishing I could talk to them and be a part of their fun. I was thinking that they would sit down in their seats and ignore me just like every other day, when they surprised me by walking right up to me. The taller boy asked “Hey, how’s it going?” At first I was not sure if he was being sincere or if he was simply picking on me because I was new. I continued to stare at him, and maybe he saw the doubt in my eyes because before I could respond, he trust out his hand and said, “My name is Steven, and this is Chris. What’s your name? I took his hand, grasping it firmly and said, “My name is Sang. Its’ nice to meet you.” Although I responded calmly, I was jumping in joy inside of me. Then Chris asked, “So, where you from?” “From South Korea, kinda far away” I said. I saw Steven’s eyes widen and he said “That’s like on the opposite side of the world! That’s pretty cool.” I laughed at Steven’s response, giving a quick shrug and saying “I guess so.” That was the first conversation I had with my new best friends in America. That day, I could not be thankful enough to Steven and Chris for letting me into their friendship and saving me from my own little dark hole. As the days went on, I was able to make more friends, and I began to enjoy school. My new friends were different from my friends in Korea in that they laughed at different types of jokes and that they loved football more then soccer. But they were still the same with my old friends in that they were always there for each other no matter what. People began to say “hi!” to me in the hallways, give me high-fives, and even talk to me during class. I became more comfortable with all my new friends and I started to go out with them on weekends and sometimes I even got into trouble for talking too much in class. But I did not care because I simply glad that I had finally made friends in my new school. When I came home from school, I no longer got on my knees and begged my mom so I could go back to Korea, but I did begin to sit down with my mom and tell her all the exciting things that happened at school. I finally felt that the school had accepted me, not just according to records, but by those who matter the most, the students of my new school. Over time, I realized Korea was not the only home I had, but that this once unfamiliar and foreign place had become another home for me.
As the plane touched down at Richmond International Airport, the flight attendant spoke over the intercom, “We have just landed in Richmond, welcome home everyone!” That was the first time that I had ever heard the words “home” and “Richmond” in the same sentence. The summer before my senior year, I was faced with something that I knew was going to change my life forever. My family and I had lived in Wesley Chapel, Florida since I was six years old. I knew the small town and its people very well. I had made best friends and was on the varsity cheerleading squad with girls I had known since elementary school. I was very happy and comfortable in my surroundings. For me, it was where I had grown up and where I belonged. My life changed dramatically as my father had accepted a new job in Richmond, Virginia. I knew that this move was going to be the most challenging obstacle of my life. Many people asked me how I would survive moving to a new state in my senior year. I had many offers from friends to stay with them in Florida and finish high school there. Although they were gracious offers, I never took them seriously because I am very close to my family and I knew that we all needed to stay together. I was very scared about moving to a new place, but somehow I knew it would be okay. I jumped right into the spirit of Clover High School and when I tired out for the varsity cheerleading squad. I was Captain of my high school varsity squad in Florida and felt very comfortable participating in that team sport. I hoped that if I made the squad here, that would lead some new friendships and a way to get involved with a team activity in my new school. Practices started during the summer and I was grateful to make the squad and meet some new schoolmates before classes started. I am glad that my parents encouraged me to try out. Their support helped me to make the transition and bolster my self-confidence. My drive to be involved and fit in began to grow. While I was already inducted into the National Honor Society and the National French Honor Society in Florida, I had to transfer to the local Clover Hill High School Chapters. Here, I continued to participate in volunteer community and school activities and found some common ground with a group of new friends. I had one last thing to do. I had been and active member of the Journalism Department and editorial staff member of the school newspaper at Wesley Chapel High. I interviewed during the summer with the Journalism Department at Clove Hill High and was chosen to join their staff for the school newspaper. This was a great way to learn about things happening in the school and to interview and meet new people. I had found another common link. Life will work out! September approached and I found myself terrified and walking into school the first day. Even though I knew 25 girls from cheerleading, they were lost in the crowd of 2,0000 students. I immediately felt like a foreigner. I knew nothing of the teachers, classrooms, halls, lunch schedules, and school traditions. I dreaded when lunch time came around on the first day because I was afraid I was going to have to sit all by myself. Luckily, I spotted my brother in the lunch room, and we had lunch together. He was there for me and I was there for him. What a relief! Would there be any more surprises for me to over come? Of course! The grading scale in Virginia requires that you must have a 94% to earn a “A” as opposed to a 90% grade in Florida. Although this was a huge challenge, I realized that I’d just need to work harder. I set my goals and a plan to get there, and since moving to Richmond, I have maintained a 4.5 GPA. Although I had a strong academic background with more credits than needed to graduate, I only had tow years of a foreign language as required in Florida. In Virginia, I needed three years of the same foreign language to earn a “Advanced Diploma.” I was determined to achieve this type of diploma because I had always strived for excellence. Therefore, I needed to take a third year of French. I enrolled in tutoring sessions twice a week since I had a year off from studying the language and the course structure was different from one state to another. I was determined to succeed and I did, earning a “A”. I have had many teachers who have welcomed me with open arms into the new school, which was a great relief to me. There were many things such as “SOL” tests and “Type 3” writing papers which I had never heard of before. The career resource counselor helped me schedule all the “SOL” tests that I needed to take to graduate. I was grateful to have people who understood my “new student” status and introduced me to other students. These things, as well as everyday things like finding my way around a new school and town, making new friends and learning to fit into the school, were all part of the relocation. Some how, with each passing day, living in the Richmond area got easier. Simple things like students introducing themselves, and even a group of girls (who are now some of my closet friends) inviting me to join them in study groups, or to go out for a dessert in just the second week of school, all made the transition smoother. By the time football season started, I truly felt like I was a part of the school and community spirit and my roots started to grow. I was pleasantly surprised at how nice some people could be to someone they didn’t even know. This move has had an enormous impact on me in many ways, as I learned so many things. I have learned to value the people that mean the most to me. My parents and siblings have helped me through this difficult time, and I am forever grateful. I know that without them, I would be lost. To this day, my brother and I still eat lunch together on even-schedule days. I enjoy it because my brother and I have grown much closer then we ever were because of this move. I have met many new people through this experience, but I have learned that I must stay true to myself. It is best to have people love you for who you are, rather than something you aren’t. As for advice, no matter how many new people you come across; just remember to be true to yourself, but also have a open mind and an open heart. Fitting in at a new school, even in your senior year, may seem like an impossible task, but there isn’t anything that you can’t do if you believe in yourself. Participating in sports, clubs, or volunteer work will always help you meet new people. As I face my next challenge, college, I see how this relocation has helped me to be a stronger person. I am more confident that I can, and will, adapt to another new environment quickly and help others who are facing their “relocation” for the first time. I have also learned that things change, sometimes unexpectedly, and even unwillingly. However, it is up to you where you go from there.
The reason my parents relocated to the Richmond area is not one of the normal reasons you might hear. My family was not transferred by one of my parents’ employers, they did not accept a job with a new company nor did we already have family in this area. I had become very ill during my freshman year of high school and was unable to attend our local school system because of the severe reactions I was having to the environment of our school and eventually several public buildings in the area. I have been an asthmatic since before I turned two years old and because of the toxins I had been exposed to in our high school not only did I have problems breathing, I developed daily migraines, chronic fatigue, an accelerated heart rate, chest pains, skin allergies, short term verbal memory loss, reading comprehension and retention problems and the toxins caused my gallbladder to quit functioning resulting in surgery to remove it. Because of these problems, my doctor refused to allow me to attend classes and my former high school decided to put me on home instruction. I was taking six subjects and received one hour of tutoring five days a week. It was the most difficult and depressing time of my life. Because very little tutoring was offered with the home instruction program, my parents and older brother spent time every day teaching me what I should have been learning in a classroom setting. My mom went to school almost daily to meet with each teacher to drop off completed work and pick up new assignments. Thanks to the love and support of my family and a very dedicated tutor, my grades were excellent and I didn’t fall behind in my studies. When the school year ended, my parents decided to take our annual vacation to Virginia Beach. They really didn’t know whether I would be able to tolerate the trip or the environment, but decided to try it. The worst that could happen would be cutting our vacation short and returning home. Within a week of being in Virginia, some of my symptoms started to lessen. For the first time in almost a year I was able to spend time outside and started to be able to spend time with other kids my age swimming, shopping and basically having a semi-normal teenage life. Our two week vacation turned into three weeks and then four. We went home at the end of July. Within a week of returning home, I was as sick as I had been before our trip. While on vacation, we became good friends with a family who live in Chesterfield and my parents decided to return to Virginia to try to find a school I could attend and somewhere to live. My mom and dad knew that for me to be successful and happy, they had to find a way to get me back into a normal high school environment. They were willing to leave their jobs, our home, family and friends to give me a chance at a normal high school life. Within a week, I was enrolled in Manchester High School, we had rented a house and were on our way back to Ohio to pack our things and move to Virginia. I know that my parents had a difficult time doing this because it meant leaving everything and everyone, including my brother. From the first day I walked into Manchester, I felt that my counselor and all of my teachers really cared about not only my education but me. I was determined to do my best and not let anything stand in my way of succeeding. I was so happy to be back in school. I decided the best way to meet new people was to become involved in activities in my new school and community. I started playing basketball again, joined some clubs and continued to work hard in class. Before becoming sick, I had been very active in sports and clubs. Now I was able to participate again. The staff, teachers and students at Manchester made me feel welcome and at home. I am again involved in student government, clubs, do community service and I work part time. I have received so much support and understanding from my counselor and teachers that I have decided to go to college and become a teacher myself. I am already working with children between the ages of six weeks old through age fourteen. I teach them how to play some sports including the rules of the game. I take care of them which could be changing diapers and feeding the little ones to helping the older children with homework or just talking out problems. I love every minute I spend with them. I can only hope that someday I will be able to help at least one student as much as I feel the Manchester staff, teachers and students have helped me. The best advice I feel that I can give to other students who find themselves in the position of relocating while in high school is to get involved in sports or activities at school, work hard and don’t be afraid to meet new people. I came from a high school with 1,100 students. Manchester has over 2,500 students. I could have allowed myself to be intimidated, but even though it was difficult at times. I made up my mind that I was going to succeed and make all my family’s love, support and sacrifices worthwhile. I am going to start college this fall and plan to get my Master’s Degree in Secondary Education. I plan to stay in Virginia after graduating from college and would love to return to Manchester to teach and pass on all the knowledge I have and hope that I will have half the impact on my students that my teachers have had on me. By receiving this scholarship it will bring me closer to achieving my dream of becoming a teacher and touching the live of students the way my teachers have touched my life.
As I sat in my parents’ car on my way to our new house in Midlothian, I felt like a sailor, torn from his ship and put on a lifeboat, forced to find sanctuary in the vast expanse of the sea. On the highway, the wide roads are the gigantic waves, each signaling a great mystery. To put it mildly, I was a bit more than apprehensive. Why, I questioned, should I be displaced now? Will I have the same opportunities? Will I be able to find my place? There were almost as many uncertainties and questions as the clouds above me. Today, I look back at that journey with a calming smile. If I were now given another chance of choosing to stay or to move to Richmond, I would not hesitate on embracing the latter. During the summer of 2003, the summer before my junior year, my family and I moved from Fairfax, Virginia to the Richmond area. At that time, my father recently found a job in Richmond and given the long drive from Richmond to Fairfax, my parents decided that moving to Richmond was the best decision. I did not agree with my parents because when I was nine years ago, my parents and I came to the United States. Closeness of relations and warmness of care have always been values I embrace, for in China, my extended family and I visit each other often, developing an inseparable sense of family. During the beginning years of my arrival, I felt displaced, for I was surrounded an entirely new environment. Though I wished to make new friends, the language barrier frequently blocked me. However, I studied hard and adjusted to the American life. High School was the first time that I felt like an integral part of a close community. I made many friends and actively participated in extracurricular activities. At the end of my sophomore year, I looked forward to becoming an upperclassman with all my friends. I was happily ensconced in Fairfax. It was then that my family decided to move. I came to Midlothian with skepticism. I doubted that I could find the same intimacy that persisted in Fairfax. My community quickly effaced this doubt during the first week of my arrival. Living near a cul-de-sac, my family and I were quickly welcomed through gatherings of the community. Being basketball player, I spent my free time playing ball with the neighborhood kids and adults. The welcoming hellos and gestures of my neighbors produced an effable feeling of closeness, a feeling that I embraced and extended back to my neighbors. School soon started and contrary to my fears, I quickly found my place. At Midlothian High School, I continued with the International Baccalaureate program, a rigorous college preparation program that I started in Fairfax. I quickly became comfortable with students at Midlothian High School because there are only thirty students in the IB program. The intimacy we shared from helping each other and take the same classes quickly developed into a close-knitted family atmosphere. The educational transfer was more of a challenge. Because junior year was the commencement of college-credit courses in the IB program, workload increased sharply and expectations soared. No more do teachers remind me of due days and provide homework time in class. The burden falls heavily upon my shoulders. In English class, I struggled with writing on a college level. A’s earned during sophomore years have transformed into C+’s and B’s. However, beyond my own determination, my teachers provided the time attention I needed to improve. Back in Fairfax, thirty students divided a teacher’s attention in every class, resulting in a lack of individual attention. However, at Midlothian High School, there were frequently less than ten students in a class. As the result, I had ample chances for participation in my classes. After my second C+ on an essay, I made up my mind to forever erase that grade. For my next paper on Oedipus Rex, I outlined my thoughts and after each step, I would come to my English teacher and discuss my ideas. I truly had a great teacher, for she even sacrificed one of her lunches to review my final outline. During class, I used every opportunity to expound my ideas and support them with text. From that process, I learned to examine great literature, not just enjoy its superficial plot. This marked a rapid improvement in my writing, culminating in a 99 on a Jane Eyre paper. Such an experience was the result of my determination and also the individual attention found in Midlothian High School, something I would not have had back in Fairfax. Because of the cosmopolitan nature of life in Fairfax, I wondered about the choices of extracurricular activities in Richmond. I continued with my participation in after school activities and joined a few new clubs. But beyond that, Richmond has provided me with a sense of direction in life through its hospitals and universities. As a student, I am passionate about math, the sciences, and their applications to new technology, most specifically to medicine. In pursuing my interests, I had the opportunities to volunteer in the operating room of Johnston-Willis hospital as well as a local nursing home. However, one project truly left a lasting impression on me. During the summer before my senior year, I met the head of the anesthesiology department at the Medical College of Virginia. He acquainted me with a project in which students help to spread the process of anesthesiology to immigrants through translation. Being very interested in the medical field, I took charge of the project. Through this opportunity, I gained a greater knowledge of the medical profession and of communication problems from my research. Most importantly, I became a better leader through the challenges of integrating the necessary technology and finding the proper people to help me in completing this endeavor. From this project, I knew that one day I would become a leader in the current scientific revolution. I will be the scientist who will lead researchers in designing the machine that saves millions of lives in hospitals across the planet. For the teenager preparing to relocate, I would advise that teenager to embrace the new and adapt to the novel. The greatest mistake to make is trying to fit old traditions with the changing environment. Even though I viewed my new life with skepticism at the beginning, I quickly became fascinated with the different opportunities of my community. It is this attitude that enabled me to adjust quickly and succeed in my goals. Of course, there will be challenges in the relocating process. However, I would advise to treat those challenges as a learning experience. Every triumph over a challenge is contingent upon the learning and mastering of something new. I became a better writer through learning to understand a piece of literature, going beyond the superficial to find universal messages. Therefore, with this attitude, challenges are simply means with which one can become a more knowledgeable and skillful person. My relocation to Midlothian is a personal enlightenment. I have long since found a warm and welcoming island on that torrent sea I once perceived. Even though I still have good friends and memorable experiences in Fairfax, there is no doubt that I am now a part of the Richmond family.
“Moving to America?” I asked my father. “Yes, Sarah,” he replied, “you will be starting high school in Richmond, VA.” Originally when I heard of my relocation from Toronto, Canada, to Richmond, Virginia, sadness and pessimism consumed my mind. My feelings were ambiguous as I was happy that my father got a job promotion but distraught with having to start over. Questions such as, “What will I do in my spare time? How can I leave all my relatives and friends behind? whirled through my mind. Although uncertainty clouded my reaction to the move, my parents were whole-heartedly excited that I would be continuing my education in the United States. When I asked them why, they responded, “The opportunities in America are bountiful, and we know you will make the most of everything and thrive in your new surroundings.” I thought that if I told myself enough times, “The move would be a wonderful experience,” that I would eventually believe it. However, “wonderful” was far from anything I felt. After living amidst the big city life of Toronto that was immersed in worldly cultures, packed with entertainment and shopping centers and covered with streetlights, Richmond was the antithesis. In my new community, Wal-Mart stood as the biggest landmark of the area, and everyone’s excitement with the new Regal Cinema movie theater shocked me. Was I moving back in time? I felt trapped in my house without Toronto’s public transport system, and when I tried biking around, (a daily pass time in Canada), I found myself all alone. Although I spent my days crying over the past, I knew I could not remain like that forever. Lindsey, Melissa, and Jordan were my first neighborhood friends whose kind deeds of showing me around town and including me in their evening activities began to change my pessimistic perspective for the better. Things improved further when my mom signed me up for school volleyball - a sport I played very little. My determination and hard work paid off when I was chosen to be part of the team. Surely, I was making improvements day by day, but my adjustment to this new country did not happen overnight. Instead, it progressed each year as I encountered new obstacles and conquered difficult challenges. Freshman year was a time of adjustment to new academic expectations and an American lifestyle. I realized that my following years would not come as easy as I hoped. Socially and academically, I faced many obstacles. As a minority in a mainly Caucasian school, the transition from being well known to being labeled the “new student” became difficult. In addition, my Canadian accent of saying “Ay” after every comment and “aboooot” instead of “about” made things harder. Inspite of looking and speaking differently from the rest of my classmates, my self-confidence bridged the gap and allowed me to focus on pursuing my interests and improving my academics. Until grade eight in Canada I followed a grading scale that counted above 80% as A. I was forced to say good-bye to that luxury as only grades above 93% were considered A at Godwin. With encouraging words and continuous support from my parents, teachers, and guidance counselor, I did not let these high expectations intimidate me. I caught up in every subject except for English. After failing my first English quiz since I never saw an analogy or sentence completion before, I met with my teacher, Mrs. Woodward to practice extra problems. When my grades began changing from 70% to 100%, I realized that “Hard work always pays off.” A year later, the problems our relocation had on my family became more visible. Like the movie, “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” my relatives in Canada always united for special occasions. However, in Richmond we had to make do with a quiet dinner for three. In addition, my mother’s “stay-at-home” lifestyle began to depress her. Other than three months of maternity leave, my mother worked at a job ever since she graduated from college. Coming home every evening to see her staring at the T.V with no interest was difficult for my father and me. We wanted to help, but the green-card process stood as a hindrance. For the first time, I saw my family look to each other for strength, as waiting was our only option. Prior to the commencement of my sophomore year, I discovered that many students were ahead in math allowing them to take calculus their senior year. Since math is my favorite subject, I asked my teacher, Mrs. Tillery, what I could do to accelerate my math courses. Although the chair of the math department initially believed taking two math classes would be too demanding, my eagerness and curiosity to learn changed his mind. I, therefore, registered for both Honors Algebra II and geometry. In English, I was challenged with my inability to understand grammar and MLA format since I never learned it in Canada. I continuously met with my teacher, Mrs. Ward, to run through practice worksheets and to improve my understanding. When second semester commenced, my history teacher, Mr. Blair, asked me to join the Key Club, and a few months later, I was elected Lieutenant Governor for a division that included twelve other high school Key Clubs. In this position, I have engaged local high schools in community service activities since the fall of 2003. With my lifelong interest in volunteering, the service organizations of Key Club and 4H have opened many doors and brought me many rewards. While my leadership skills and voluntary commitment thrived, I encountered and overcame my hardest academic obstacle during my junior year. If the difficulty of my past English classes could be compared to running a marathon, my US History class would be similar to participating in a decathlon. Since my classmates had studied through the system for many years, they had encountered many components of U.S History already. I therefore met with my teacher, Mrs. Flowers, on a regular basis to catch up to my classmates. Mrs. Flowers, who witnessed my thirst for knowledge, encouraged me to apply to the Angus Powel 2004 Summer Economics Program so I would learn more about the country’s economy, federal system, and business strategies. I listened to accredited speakers such as CEO’s and entrepreneurs. My curiosity to learn about the US economy was noticed by the instructors who decided to send me to the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond to intern in the Economics Education Department. In the spring, I was awarded the “Henrico County Outstanding Youth Volunteer Award” for my community service. At the end of the year, in a selection based on leadership, academic performance, and character, I was one of three girls chosen to represent my school at Virginia Girls State. In my senior year, in addition to the honors classes and my acceptance to the National Math Honor Society, National Spanish Honor Society, National Honor Society, and BETA Honor Society, I am furthering my interest in world economics by taking an economics class at University of Richmond. As my term of Lieutenant Governor is nearing its end, I continue to make the most of my position. I will be hosting a community fundraising event “Make The Point” for Special Olympics at my school on Saturday, April 16th. As I reflect, I am extremely proud for not letting my relocation hurt me in any way. I take comments such as, “I cannot believe you moved here only three years ago,” as great compliments because they remind me of the strength and courage I used to overcome my obstacles. Some of my greatest advice to someone who has to relocate is to let your talents and positive characteristics shine. For example, even during my freshmen year, when I came home in tears every evening, I always smiled and greeted everyone in the halls to express my friendly personality. I knew that I would not want my schoolmates to talk to me for pity sake; I wanted them to talk to me because I was an interesting and unique person. Also, it is completely normal to miss friends and family, but remember that the more one dwells on his/her past and talks about how great things “used” to be, the harder it will be to move on and the less appealing he/she appears to others. As I get closer to the final chapter of my high school career, I truly believe that my relocation brought out the best qualities in me. The hardships I faced in the beginning tested my character, as it forced me to persevere in a new environment. My curiosity in Richmond, determination to fit in, and ambition to stand out as a leader drove me to constantly increase my expectations - look for something more, strive for something better. By moving to America without definite steps for my future, I allowed myself to be open to innovative ideas and wonderful opportunities.
When my parents told me that we were moving to the Richmond area I thought that my life would end. I had lived in Virginia Beach since the day I was born and couldn't imagine living anywhere else. I had moved one time in my entire life and that was only to a bigger house in the same neighborhood. I spent all of my time sorry for myself and thinking that I would never make new friends and I would never be happy again. I didn't want anything to change; I didn't want to have to start over. My dad had gotten a new job, which was a great opportunity for him but it wasn't only affecting his life it was affecting all of our lives. The months prior to the move were miserable for me. I would cry everyday and tell my parents time after time that there was no way I was going with them. I tried everything I could to get out of the move, from asking to live with friends to trying to knock the for sale sign in my front yard over so that no one would see it. I had it set in my mind that when it came time to leave, I would not be in that car with my family. The day I dreaded more than anything finally came, MOVING DAY. We had planned to move all of our stuff to our new house a month prior to when my sister and I would finish school. My dad had already started his new job and was living here but our parents had promised us we could finish school with our friends in Virginia Beach. The hardest thing wasn't actually moving all of our stuff, it was when my mom, my sister and I went back "home" to Virginia Beach to a house with a TV, a telephone and some sleeping bags. We lived in our old house for about a week until we closed and then we lived with some good friends of ours until the end of the school year. School ended on a Friday and on Saturday we went to church to say goodbye to all of our friends and then after a very sad evening we made the 1-1/2 hour drive to our new home. The summer was very boring and very sad. We were the sixth family to move into our neighborhood so there was one girl my sister's age and no one my age. I felt that my worst nightmare was coming true; I didn't have any friends. Over the summer my friends from the beach came to visit and that helped but as soon as they left it was back to normal. It was almost time for school to start and I was not looking forward to that new experience. The first morning came and I made dreaded walk into my first class, I found my seat and I was fine. Much to my surprise I had survived it. Within days I had made an awesome group of friends and I was starting to feel normal again. The year went on and I made more and more friends, I couldn't believe that everything was actually working out for me. By the end of the year I was relieved to be done, as most students, but I was looking forward to coming back in the fall. My junior year was even better. I made even more friends, most of which I still remain close with and one that I am going to be rooming with at college next year. I was doing well in school and I was happy with my life. I had gotten my license and a car for my 16th birthday. I had also gotten a job and I was working about 12 hours a week. For the first time my parents heard me say that I liked it here, they were shocked. The year went by extremely fast and again I found myself looking forward to the summer but I couldn't wait until my senior year. This has been the best year yet. I have a really close group of friends that I hang out with. We all get along great. I'm still working and trying to keep my grades up until graduation. I still find it hard to believe that I have lived here for almost three years and that I'm finally graduating. I never thought I would find myself saying that I love it here. I'm very happy that we moved and I wouldn't change a thing. I love the area, my friends, everything. Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like if we had stayed in Virginia Beach but I'm glad we didn't. If I could give someone in the same position some advice I would tell him or her not to worry about it. I know it's a scary thing and that no one wants to go through it but it was, honestly, the best thing that ever could have happened to me. I would also tell him or her not to take it our on their parents. I was awful towards my parents and I know that my mom lost many nights sleep worrying about me. Last I would tell him or her to talk to other people about what they're feeling. Don't keep everything inside because it will make you miserable like it did to me. I'm now preparing to make a larger move; the only difference is that I have chosen to make this one myself. In six months I will be leaving my home and my family to attend Virginia Tech. While I'm scared of the prospect of being without my family, I'm looking forward to the opportunities. I think that because of all of the changes I've encountered and all of the adjusting I've had to do, I will be very successful in the coming years.
Relocating to Richmond was the most challenging experience of my life. About two summers ago, after my mother re-married, she made a decision to make a change. She decided to move to Richmond, Va., to start a new beginning. My stepfather convinced her that Richmond would be a wonderful place to live and assured her that she didn’t need a job. He was going to co-pastor a church and work for a mortgage company. He was going to provide for her and her children and take care of the bills. I was overwhelmed by this decision and decided that I would just live with my daddy and finish high school in Nashville. I had lived in Nashville, Tennessee my whole life and couldn’t even imagine leaving my family and friends behind.
“The plane is preparing to land in Richmond, Virginia. Please fasten your seatbelts.” The pilot’s words still resound inside of me, for it was then that the blow of the move’s reality hit me. It had seemed almost surreal. The going away parties and the final grand send off at the airport had no effect on me whatsoever. I had told all of my friends that I was suddenly moving from Portland, Oregon, to Richmond, Virginia, but in the haste to pack up our belongings, I never really realized it myself. The move did not seem like much more than an extended vacation. Part of me kept believing that we would go back to Portland, back to all I had ever known. The next blow came the following day. I knew that my parents enrolled me in an all-male, Catholic, military school; opposite of the large, public high school I had previously attended, but I had no idea what it would be like. Walking into the building for the first day of new student orientation, I was stricken with the nervous excitement that always comes with major changes. By the time the day ended, I was terrified. I had discovered some things that made me never want to go back. The school had what they called an “orientation program,” intended to build class unity. To me, it seemed not much different from hazing condoned by the administration. As a new student, I was required to do whatever seniors told me, no matter how humiliating. Because of the military aspect of the program, I had to shine my belt buckle and shoes daily and march in formation each morning and afternoon. I had never been subjected to this type or magnitude of discipline before. I hurried out of the building and devised schemes that were intended to change my educational future. None of these ideas worked, and eventually I realized I was going to remain at this school. Unfortunately, instead of things being better than I imagined, they were worse. It was the first time I had been in a school where everyone was a stranger. I wandered from class to class aimlessly, and did not speak unless spoken to for at least three or four weeks. The new student orientation program caused much turmoil in my already confused life. When I think about it, I believe that the drastic change in environment brought about by the move was actually good for me. I learned how to deal with change, stress and adversity, managing to overcome them. I was successful. A man is the sum of all his experiences, and I have had some experiences here in Richmond that I definitely would not have had in Portland. I am the better for them.
“We’re moving.” Those two little words can instantly strike fear into any teenager’s mind. And they were words that, at the age of fourteen, I had been dreading for three years. At the time of my parent's divorce in 1998, my mother talked of moving back to her home state of Virginia. Having lived in the same West Virginia town my entire life, with the same friends, church, house, and school – the idea of leaving the state was horrifying. My father living fifteen minutes down the road was painful enough, but six hours away? The thought was unbearable. But as unbearable as the thought was, it was true. And I bore the weight of that truth for an entire eight months. From December 2000, when I was told of our future move, until August 2001, when the actual move took place, seemed like a never-ending goodbye. How does one say good-bye to life-long friends, hometown…and father? The only solution to ease the pain seemed to be trying to squeeze every moment of fun out of every day. And, of course, I became so involved in having as much fun as possible that my last time in “good ‘ole West Virginia” were miserable. You can’t have fun when fun does not want to be had. And then the day I was dreading came. Moving day. Why is it that all the words that can strike fear into the hearts of teenagers all come in twos? Just days after my fifteenth birthday, I packed the last of my memory-filled bags into my dad’s car. After a long, teary good-bye, I left my home of fifteen years to come to Virginia, a place that felt as if it would never be home.
After two weeks of moping with what my mother calls
“whiny teenager syndrome”, my sadness and anger faded into abject
terror. School would be starting soon. My sophomore year of high school,
and I would enter all alone. The day that had seemed the pinnacle of my
life-moving day-had lost its relevance in the cloud of despair that
loomed over the first day of school. Am I being melodramatic? Yes. Did
it seem melodramatic at the time? No.
All melodrama aside, the first half of my first day
was typical. Classes I could deal with, teachers foreign to everyone,
other new students, friendly smile all around. Not so scary, right?
Then…it happened. The moment of horror that plagues, the mind of every
new kid (re-enter melodrama). It was the moment of truth-or-dare,
do-or-die, will-you-survive fear. Lunchtime. Where do you go? What do
you do? Is buying lunch cool, or just inductive of toxic school food
poisoning? Are brown lunch bags the way to go, or a testament to dorkdom?
An insulated lunch box – is it environmentally sound, or just a sign of
an overprotective mother? The only safe way out? Do not eat. Okay, so it
is unhealthy, and not the best choice, but fear clouds the mind, not to
mention turns the stomach.
It is probably for the best that my fear made me
incoherent of my actions, because otherwise I may never have had the
courage to meekly ask for a seat at a table of girls from French class.
In response to a chorus of “Sure” and “Of course”, I murmured my thanks
and slid graciously into a seat. Somehow, I did not think I could play
if off very smoothly if I had dropped to my knees and yelled “Thank you!
Thank you so much!” – like I had wanted to. It is a good thing that I
did not act like spastic new girl, because through those girls, I
discovered something that I came to love – the theatre department.
The idea of becoming somebody else seemed so appealing
that when it came time to register for my junior year classes, theatre
was the first thing on my list. And when it began my junior year of high
school, it was the most exhilarating occurrence of my life. The people
were real people, and not merely a great force that seemed bent to
terrorize me and make my life a living hell. Instead, I was faced with
friends. The more shows I was in, the more people that I became, the
less that I came to need to be those other people. Within those
characters, within my passion and anger and fear and joy, within the
laughter and tears of those people that did not truly exist, I found
someone who really did exist – myself. Regardless of all the cheesy
images of teenybopper movies that that statement provokes, it is true.
In theatre, I found not only who I was and am, but who I wanted to be –
a theatre education teacher.
Now my heart lies in Virginia. While I miss my old
friends in West Virginia, I am amazed to find that it no longer hurts to
see pictures of them, and that I am okay with only seeing them every six
months. It took two and a half years, but I can honestly say that the
anger and hurt and fear have finally gone away. The “what ifs” are still
with me. “What if we never moved?” “What if I had run away?” “What if I
had not had the courage to say hello?” I try not to let those thoughts
get to me. “What ifs” can never measure up to what already is. You can
not make life something that it is not. That is the greatest lesson that I have learned throughout the ordeal. However, it is not the only one. I learned that it is okay to be afraid, you just can not let your fear control you. I learned that you have to follow your instincts, trust your gut, grab life by the collar, and hold on tight. I am not exactly a Zen master, but I do know that life is just life, and nothing more. And I also learned that the power of four little words…words that seem insignificant and silly, but make all the difference – even for of a difference than the all-terrifying “We’re moving”. “Can I sit here?” |
