Another Land

What do you notice when you move to another country? The smells, the people? Or do you notice the differences?

I met a lady at the bus stop last night, I could clearly see that she was from Latin America, she clung to her notebook (doing English classes I thought) and had a T-Shirt in Spanish. So I approached her and tried to make eye contact, smiled and said ‘hola’ Then I took a ride back to my native Spanish and conversed with her, we got on the bus and talked some more. She had recently arrived, in fact she still had one foot back in Peru and I am sure her body clock was still adjusting!

What did she think of this place I wondered?

She had innocence about her, as if she had just got her passport specifically for this intention: to move to another country. No family connection, just her husband, also Peruvian.

When you are new to something everything feels foreign, it can be very daunting and alien however you know you have made the right decision, you soldier on and get familiar with your environment it takes courage to leave your homeland when you are an adult, especially if the language is also new (I was right about her notebook, she studies at night once a week) . You miss your family and friends.

Imagine how it will be when you have settled in and you can listen to the news on TV and understand 80% of the content and then as your confidence builds up you become eager to talk to strangers and get your nerve to try new things! (if only your friends in the barrio could see you now!). You learn how to count money, and familiarize yourself with your neighborhood.

Starting a new life is not easy; however the benefits outweigh the discomfort in the beginning. You have a new chapter in your life and you are creating a new beginning in a beautiful country.

So if you are feeling like life is foreign to you and you are not venturing out trying new things, think of all the new immigrants coming to our shores making this their new homeland, they are embracing the new.