STUDY IN UK

After all those years of studying in the US, I find it much more difficult to adjust to a different culture and language when you’re still in school. Living there for so long gave me a new perspective on how to deal with other people, especially in my family where everyone speaks English as their second language, but there are few opportunities for that at my work. Not only when I interact with others in stores or restaurants, but also around my friends and college students who live here, too. It can be tough sometimes just trying to communicate things that seem simple to say, like “I’m fine”; especially as an adult with a hard time using slang.

“The first three weeks were a breeze, then they started flying by” — My dad says this after we went out for dinner, so it was obvious he was making a statement about how quickly things had changed since we left. As soon as we started spending some time together that week, my mom would get into an argument with two young guys over drinking alcohol and smoking cigars. Eventually, they said something about wanting to change jobs, which meant that they didn’t care about the fact that her son kept smoking cigars after every meal. The day before Christmas break, she went right back into court and won a custody battle. She wants to move me out of our house in New York to Florida, but I also want to raise my kids there. So I’m not sure if we will make it, or if this will mean a lot more stress on my life. I don’t know what the future holds, but I know one thing is certain: If and when I get to Florida and eventually Florida comes up on my radar, I’m definitely gonna stay. You never really know who’s going to turn out being your child’s favorite. This sounds terrible to say, but I’m used to having my way sometimes.

So, anyway, all these thoughts are swirling through my mind as I sit there writing this.

All this happened while sitting in a plane that has flown from Los Angeles to New York and now back again to LAX. As it turns out, despite living in London, I still have a very easy access to the U.S. because I spent about 11 months there. When my dad gets out of jail and starts his own business, I have no doubt that I would be able to go to Florida or even come home to visit in New York during those last couple of months.

For someone who is quite introverted and socially awkward, I’ve always been kind of outgoing and social when I am with others, though I do tend to avoid them when I’m alone. A part of what makes me uncomfortable is that I can’t go to school when things are bad in England so getting out is quite difficult. And when I think about the possibility of moving, I don’t know about you guys, but it doesn’t sound exactly appealing to be living in the States and having trouble coming to terms with moving to another country where everything changes rapidly. I need a change and a new beginning that goes beyond my current living situation. But I’m pretty contented and fortunate enough that I have found a better opportunity to live.

There are many reasons why I love Australia and my partner is already planning on working there, including my girlfriend being Australian, who was born and raised in the country and knows how it feels to be different (and a bit of a stranger). I’ve met so many amazing Australians in my career so far, but seeing my whole family as being Australians makes me feel closer to them even just by looking at their faces and seeing their languages, their food. For example, I’m British with roots in Britain, my mum’s heritage, but my father’s roots are Italian. That alone gives me a place of origin because I’m so lucky that I got to meet so many Australians along the way. There are so many cultures and cuisines that I love eating and so many foods that I wouldn’t call American, I say European, but this is definitely not an excuse to eat American. I truly love my mother’s cooking, and I don’t have any complaints when she makes pasta, meatballs, cookies, etc., for us. I love watching movies that aren’t shown on TV in America, and my brother loves American shows that aren’t shown on TV. I get to travel to America and visit places that are not usually visited because my parents haven’t lived there in a decade. While some parts of the world may seem complicated, I feel that it is relatively easy to adapt to a foreign culture because it is still new to me and they aren’t as familiar to me as the ones I grew up with. At least so far, the Americans aren’t making me feel stuck in my hometown anymore, nor does anyone else. All in all, I love living in the US as it has taught me so many things about myself and how to become a good person and share my gifts. I think there are many similarities to my upbringing with my culture, however, it seems to be easier to find connections to my home. Hopefully, I can get past all the stereotypes and negative opinions I feel I have to hold onto, and take advantage of what I have at my disposal. Until then, I want to go wherever my heart desires and see where my interests lead me. Who knows? Maybe the next chapter in life will be a little less challenging than my previous one.