English 1A
1 September 2010
Moving to New Zealand
Since I was about eight years old I wanted to go to school in another country. France was my dream. But as we grow up we learn that dreams don’t always come true. Luckily, mine partly did.
My sophomore year of high school was extremely tough on me, as I imagine it is on most kids. It was different for me because by the time I was a sophomore I had my license which was cool, and school was fine, but my home life was a huge struggle. My brother wasn’t speaking to my dad which made my dad not talk to me, my mom got a new boss who was awful to her which made her cranky all the time, my friends were changing and all this drama was going on so I decided I needed a break from here. Sounds childish, I know, but since the offer was still on the table to be an exchange student, I took the chance as quickly as possible.
I had every imaginable country to choose from; I just had to narrow them down. I eliminated all the places I had been to (which were the more popular ones) because I wanted to experience a new place I mite not have on a normal vacation. If you know me as a person you know my life is about movies, and my favourite movie at the time of my decision making happened to be The Lord of the Rings, which was filmed in New Zealand. I had never been there before, heard anything about it, never met any one from there, but what the heck, how cool would it be to say I lived in Middle Earth? So New Zealand became my number one choice, and low and behold I got one of the last spots. It was just meant to be.
The Homework on Time for School
` School is one of my main priorities. I was always on time for school; rarely missed a day of school and just a kid who loved to learn and go to school. School came easy to me and it got easier as i got older. It’s kind of weird i say that because, a lot of teenagers would say they find it much more difficult, but me i find it easy. I was picked on when i was little but it didn't bother me. I ...
In the months leading up to my departure, things had been changing even still on a different level. My cousin and grandma had moved into our tiny little house, making it five people and one very large dog in our very small house. My leaving was kind of a relief to everyone, though sad, still a relief.
On my last night here in California my mom let me spend the night at my boyfriend Josh’s house. He was the love of my life and I was devastated I had to leave him. That whole night neither of us could sleep. I wanted to spend every waking moment I had left with him. We talked all night about nonsense and how much we were going to miss each other, then finally, after we got a few hours of sleep it was time to get up and push through my last day here. It was February 19th, 2008. Ill never forget the date.
Josh and I headed home to meet my mom and cousin Karla for breakfast. Mom, as usual, trying to not get emotional, was going over every safety tip in the book and telling me that she will fly down in a heartbeat if I ever needed her. I know she only meant well, but she was already starting to worry me. Even though the breakfast was meant for the four of us, it was pretty much just me and my mom talking. I could never imagine how hard it must have been for her to send her little girl away for a year not knowing where she’s going or if she’d be okay. Optimism, I suppose. It is one of her best qualities.
Getting home from breakfast, I found my best friend Alex waiting for me in my room with a present. Inside it was something for every holiday I would miss, including my birthday. It made me cry seeing her cry because I was going to miss her the most, and she knew it. Once she left for work I had to finish the rest of my laundry and packing. Now you would think when you move to another country they allow you to have more than one suitcase, but no. I was allowed ONE suitcase and ONE carry on. How I did it, I will never know. I remember packing so much into my suitcase that it got so fat both me and Karla had to sit on it while Josh somehow managed to zip it. Ill never forget it was heavier than our dog, and our dog is enormous.
The Homework on Growing Pains Life Mom Day
I still remember that sad summer day when my storybook life came crashing down. I was washing the mound of dishes that stacked up daily in our kitchen. I didn't mind the dishes because half the time was spent splashing in the water making giant soapy bubbles that were fun to pop. My clothes usually got drenched, but that was okay. My mom drove in the driveway unusually early that day. I noticed ...
After some friends stopped by I got a call from the Headmaster of my school in New Zealand apologizing for the late notice but telling me I was to be going to a very extraneous hiking trip for four days just a few days after I arrived so he wanted to make sure I was bringing everything I needed. Now I am not an outdoors type person, so I got really nervous. And I had no hiking boots, so off we went for our last minute shopping which took forever and was not very fun. All me and my mom did was fight because now we couldn’t go to a nice dinner. All I wanted was sushi because it is my favourite and I was going to have to go a year without it. But no, we got In N Out instead. Still good, but its no eel roll.
By the time we headed home, I could not even believe how fast the day had gone by. It was already time to say my goodbyes. Daddy was first. He came to surprise me just after we returned home from dinner. Him being there probably meant the most to me that day. He had a brand new camera for me to take everywhere I went while on my “journey”. I loved how he called it that. He also gave me an envelope which he told me to save for the plane, so I did. I hated saying goodbye to my dad, but he promised he would email me every week so it made me feel better. A little.
Josh was next. He was my first real boyfriend, my first love, and the first person I would have to leave behind while I made that new chapter in my life. Throughout that whole day I don’t remember a moment where he was not by my side or holding my hand. He had been there for me through so much since we had been together, but this, I had to do alone. I couldn’t say goodbye to him or else I’d start crying. But the way we said goodbye I couldn’t really explain, it was all just feelings. Him kissing me then getting in his car was hard, but I had not even begun to imagine the intensity my emotions could take me to throughout the rest of that night.
The drive out to LAX was quiet actually. We had a full car with me, mom, Karla, my brother Wes, his girlfriend Nicole and my mom’s boyfriend Juan. I had too much on my mind to really say anything, and no one else did either. Once we got closer to the airport my mom started making sure we had everything ready. I started to shake, but I couldn’t tell if it was because I was cold or it was my nerves.
The Essay on Satisfy Our Request Day Time Mom
On Wednesday, June 18, 2003, I had finalized the decision to put my incapacitated dog to rest. It became a reality. I clearly remember the warm, breezy day that occurred two weeks ago. As I sat in the freshly cut grass of my front yard, I paid no attention to the sounds of the birds that were singing or the leaves that were dancing on the trees. All that was on my mind was the details of the last ...
Checking in and getting rid of my bag was a blur. My cousin wouldn’t let me go and my mom wouldn’t stop crying. I didn’t think my brother would have cared that I was leaving, but when he hugged me goodbye it was like I had never been hugged so tightly before. Watching my mom cry, at least trying not to cry, made me cry which made Juan cry, it was a mess. Karla was still attached to me, literally, telling me not to go. I never thought leaving would have been that hard to do. It turned out to be one of the most emotional moments of my life. I loved my family so much I started to question myself and why I wanted to do this, but deep down I knew it was going to change a lot of things for the better.
I didn’t stop crying for hours. I was so scared I didn’t know what else to do. When I got to my seat I text Josh telling him I loved him then turned off my phone and opened my dads card which made things so much harder. I couldn’t even tell you what my dad wrote to me because I could only bear to have read it that one time. I just remember his encouragement assured me that I was making the right decision to do something exciting for myself. I love my dad, I wouldn’t have listened to anyone else’s words but his at that precise moment.
The plane ride itself was about fourteen hours. Fourteen hours of restlessness. My mind was racing through so many things I couldn’t focus on anything. I played every movie they had to offer, never finishing or even making it half way through any of them. I started about three books not making it past page 9 in each. Sleep was not an option sitting in between two people. By the last two hours I had befriended the woman next to me. She was a Kiwi returning home and extremely nice. She calmed me down a bit, but once we landed I started to shake again and nothing was going to help it this time.
As soon as we were allowed to I turned my phone on and it immediately blew up with text messages from mom, dad, Josh, Karla, Alex and so many other friends. They made me happy but also made me tear up again. Once I got my bags and walked out through the crowd I knew I could do this. While wandering the terminal a hand tapped my shoulder and I turned to find two strangers, Donna and David. They were to be my new family and had recognized me from my picture. They were so incredibly nice and helpful, I could tell we were going to get along great.
The Essay on Heathcliff Made A Villain By Love
Love is a two way street. In order for love to work it must be given and returned. If love is left unfulfilled it can lead a person to be spiteful, vengeful, and at the extreme villainous. In Emily Bronte's novel, Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff is the villain because he is frustrated about his unrequited love for Cathy. Heathcliff's villainy is apparent in how he treats the Earnshaws, degrading ...
The drive to my new home was weird. I have been in a car in England before so I knew it was opposite, but man was it scary sitting in the front seat in the wrong side of the car driving on the wrong side of the road. It was going to take some getting use to. The landscape was like nothing I had ever seen before. Everything was so beautifully green I couldn’t get over it. I immediately knew I loved it there. This was my new home and I couldn’t believe how lucky I was. It was a brand new day into a brand new life style and it is a day that I will never forget.
