Sailing on a Different Sea

In your life, have you ever had experiences where the sail of your life did not go to where you wanted it to? I bet many of you have experienced at least once. Whether you weren't able to register for that one class that is the prerequisite for all your other classes, or whether you missed a night out with friends because you were sick, your course of your life has been changed. The degree of the change, of course, depends on how you value that experience. So it can be a subtle or a big, but it all depends on you.

Quote by Elizabeth Edwards

[Image by Lori Newman via Etsy Shop]

Nowadays, when people ask me to tell them more about myself, I mostly never fail to tell them about my immigration experience. To some people, it may seem insignificant, but to me, that experience holds a lot of weight. It is and will probably stay as one of the moments that changed the sail of my life forever. It was like somebody accidentally pressed the reset button, and suddenly, I was sailing along on a different sea without any of the items I packed on my luggage.

In general, immigration is not an easy feat. You are constantly faced with changes. And no matter what age you are when you experience a change, it still is difficult. Compared to other people, I think it was harder for me. It was an experience I did not really want to have. However, I had no other choice but to deal with it. So, in the end, I have a love-hate relationship with immigration. I dislike it because I had to leave my friends and other family members. It was also very distressing. I had tons of things going on, and I had to settle them all at the same time.

On the other hand, the things I'm thankful for for immigrating is that, it gave me the opportunity to widen my perspective and it made me value everyday life more. Migration also gave me the opportunity to widen my career horizons. It was only after moving to the United States that I was able to hear more about the area of Mental Health. Most likely, if I stayed back in my country and never left, I probably won’t have as much exposure to mental health as I have now.

Overall, I share this story to other people because I want them to understand where I am coming from. During those 5 years of change, my life was not something you can describe as smooth sailing. It was difficult. It was physically, mentally, and emotionally draining. My sailing always encountered storms and thunders. But despite that, slowly but surely, I was able to steadily head towards a wonderful destination, one that is sunny and full of hope.