Hey guys! Shall we start the journey? Yes? Okay 🙂 So people always tell you that if you feel overwhelmed about explaining about a past experience, story or any kind of event, start at the beginning. So that is where I will start.
Some twelve months back, sitting head bowed down on the wooden church pew, I was scared. I had less than a month before moving away from what I had known all my life. I had a life there, and I don’t mean just breathing. Just by me sat a wonderful friend who was totally excited about me moving thousands of miles away from home. Not that I wasn’t but as the future became more present I developed cold feet. I confided to her in whispers in church that day about my biggest fear. It wasn’t about my race, my religion, my looks or even my almost always strong opinions, it was the simple fear of making friends.
My friend however was totally convinced that it would be easy for me to make friends, considering the fact that we are friend that she loves me.. Reassuring me with words of hope and kindness, she told me this, “Don’t worry, you will make friends. You will meet the right people for you, and they are going to love you for who you are, just be yourself”. She couldn’t have been more right.
Months later, thought about this conversation I had with my friend and the question I asked myself was why did I think that making friends was important enough so much it scared me. I mean the promise of thrill and adventure , going to new places, trying out new food and a different cultures should have been more than enough for me. Plus this is the modern age, I could talk with my friends back home whenever and however I wanted. So did I think I needed to make friends? So after a while I got the answer, and it isn’t as complicated as the question. We are human beings so therefore we need human contact to help make our experiences more real. I mean I could have gone camping, partying, watching a movie all by myself. However the most memorable moments I treasure so far are the ones I spent with my friends. They added a new twist, a blend to what I already new, they pushed me to try out new things, to become myself fully, to let go of the pain and hurt life throws at you. In fact they would stay up till 2 am talking with me about so many different things we would even forget why we started the conversation in the first place. They would tell me to my face when i was wrong not caring if I liked it or not. They would bear endless moments of me telling them what I thought was right when I was actually wrong.
I had a wonderful studying abroad. What made it more wonderful was the people I chose to spend it with. My circle wasn’t a large one and I am glad to say we stayed friends right until the end. If I had known that I would be meeting the kind of strangers who turned acquaintance then friend then very goods friends, i would have never had the conversation I did with my friend back home. However, i am glad i did because she gave me confidence in who i was. She didn’t say well when you meet new people you should keep your opinions to yourself, agree with everything they say, or make sure everyone likes you. She said just be yourself. Glad i listened to her advice, because in the end my the friends i made here appreciated the real me.
Ultimately people come and go, but memories stay with us forever. It is better you have a memory of your true self though sometimes it might not be all rosy than have a distorted ‘beautiful’ ones wherein you cannot even recognize who you really are. The right people would stay in your life, you don’t have to be cool or in the cool gang. The truest and most loyal people would love you when you are dressed up or down, crying or laughing, sad or happy, rich or poor. The memories of my journey would have been pleasant had i hidden my true self. Do the same.
The journey continues…
yatianaconteh 