Change and Acquisitions

 

       In a new country, people will always change their lifestyle to adapt to an unfamiliar environment. Since I moved to Chicago from China, my lifestyle has substantially changed. For example, I have had to do something that I never wanted to do before I came to Chicago. I have eaten a lot of fast food, played different games, and learned new skills to get a job. These are amazing things. Therefore, I changed some of the lifestyle that I had developed in China and my own personality, and I gained my first part-time job and English-speaking skills. 

    I needed to change my original lifestyle and personality to adapt to the new environment. My personality is very shy. In China, some of the teachers and parents always require the students to just study and improve their knowledge to pass exams in China. At that time, I did not have more chances to relax in high school. I was unwilling to talk to strangers, so my friends and teacher told me they thought I was a cold girl when they first met me. However, I came to Chicago one year ago, and I thought I should change my personality because I needed to make new friends to adapt to this society. Friends play a significant role in my life. When I first came to Harold Washington, I was nervous and afraid that I would not know how to be in college, but my teacher and classmates were nice. They were all willing to talk with me even though my English was poor. Because of my friendship with them, I have become a more cheerful girl. I tried to talk to classmates who I met for the first time, and then I smiled and became confident.  

    Now, I am confident to express myself, and I have gained a lot of things. For example, I have a lot of friends in Chicago, and they have changed my life a lot. Before I came to Chicago, I never had a part-time job. I just knew how to study. If I needed money, my parents would give money to me. However, one year ago, I made a new friend, and she taught me how to adapt here. She took me to Chinatown and helped me find an excellent job. After that, because of my outgoing personality, the boss gave me a part-time job selling candy. Thus, I always use English to talk with customers and improve my English speaking skills, and I am proud I can earn money to support my life. That is a huge gain in my life.  

     I am more content and in a better mood in general because change has made a deep impact on my life. I believe that since I changed my personality, my life has gotten more and more interesting, and I will gain a new opportunity, a respectable job, and valuable skills. The future is full of possibilities, and I think I will keep changing my life, such as my personality, habits, ideas, and so on. My life is becoming more and more meaningful.

Loss and Gain

Loss and Gain

People’s ability to accept new things depends on their cognitive ability. Trying to accept a new culture or new environment is the requirement for every immigrant. Although there are many differences between cultures, they have to accept them. When I moved to Chicago at first, I still had series of unfamiliar things that could not accept. The environment, the people, and life, were different from the city Guangdong I live in China. However, I slowly started to make these new things become the part of my life.

At the beginning when I moved to Chicago, I felt a sense of disgust. The sound of car horns on the street made me uncomfortable. In fact, the most popular transportation in Chicago are cars, and there is a public transportation system called the CTA.  However, in China, its trains are motorcycles. There was no much heavy noise in the city Taishan Guangdong when I live in China  because it is not a first-tier city, but Chicago’s traffic environment is noisy. It is very rare to see a motorcycle in Chicago. Most motorcycles I have seen were privately equipped with some starters, which can emit thick smoke. Every time they rush past me, I always heard a harsh sound of stepping on the accelerator, and a white line on the air. However, private modification of motorcycles is prohibited in China.. One more thing I had difficult adapting to is the social circle. I lost the connection with my friends in China slowly because of the time difference. After class, I also didn’t have any communication with my classmates, not only in study, but also in work. I only lived in the online social media and immersed myself in it every day, so that I lost contact with the outside world. Losing friends made me have a feeling of emptiness in my heart. Although the online social media and games can soothe my emotion, it is temporary, and can not solve deeper problems from the source. During that time, I always went to Chinatown, even though I didn’t know about the local culture in Chicago. Also, I even didn’t have some friends who can talk to, the emptiness in my heart can’t be suppressed. Chinatown became the only place for fun for me during that time. However, I could not open my heart to talk with a foreigner. This may due to the fear of discrimination or the difference of culture. Sincerely, my ability to accept new things is weak, but I have to change the terrible situation. It is like a sky that loss color. I have a series of things that don’t fit it but have to fit, which is a basics of living in a strange city or a strange continent.

In addition, the situation changed in spring semester in 2020. I had more chance to get to know more people. I slowly found my social circle again. Like in China, I went to some entertainment venues with my classmates after class. I also went traveling to other city during the three-year summer holiday, which was the experience that I had never had in China. In Chicago, I have learned a real meaning of the traveling. I had never been another city when I was in China. Therefore, the experience in Chicago is significant to me. The two places that people in Chicago like to travel is Canada and New York. Comparing to Chinese culture, Chinese people seems to not like to travel, unless they are rich. The cost of travel in Chicago is moderate for a ordinary family. After moving to Chicago, I had more way to broaden horizons. In addition, museums are everywhere here. I used to lived in a developing city Guangdong when I live in China. Therefore, I had less chance to get exposed to things not related to study, such as the exhibitions and museums. In my opinion, Chicago has better economic development than Taishan Guangdong, the city I lived in China. Chicago’s mathematics and computer development level is already very high in the world, which are more excellent than in China. It also the major I want to choose after I transfer to the university. Therefore, I could get a better chance to be more prepared in the same field. Due to the huge population, employment pressure is becoming heavier and heavier. I think I can adapt to this new living environment in Chicago now.

Despite the noisy whistle and the missing social circle, I have still gained a wide vision. This series of changes stemmed from the integration of American culture. Immigrating to Chicago has changed my life trajectory. Although it was difficult for me to adapt at the beginning, I still glad that I had passed that period.

Be Part of It

 Yilu Li 

ESL 100 

October 15, 2023 

Be Part of It 

It is hard to live a new life in the United States as a Chinese person. Chinese and Americans have totally different culture and behavior. Because of the difference between these two countries, I have had to give up many things to fit into this new society. I did not know I would have to do this to live my life in the United States. Although I do not think I am totally getting used to this city, I have also gained some things that I did not have before. Now, I have a very different life from my old life, and I have tried hard to achieve that. 

I knew that I would have different life in the United States before I came to this country, but what I did not know was I had to give up some things and try very hard to adapt. Sometimes, I had to try hard to fit into society because I felt I was too different from others. In the first couple days I came to the United States, I was shocked by peoples’ lunch style. Many of the Americans just go to the fast-food restaurant or eat some sandwich that they buy from the store. When I was in China, people had many choices for lunch. They would not just eat fast food or a sandwich. Instead, Chinese people prefer to eat rice with meat and vegetables. After lunch, Chinese people have one or two hours break to rest and sleep for a while. Chinese people believe that sleeping after lunch can give them energy to work on the rest of the day, but most Americans do not have live their lives like this. I felt very strange at the beginning, but now I know because Americans have rushed schedule. Now, I just live like an American and finish my lunch very quickly. I do not have much time to enjoy the meal because I have to go to work after class. In this case, I have had to give up those things to fit in and live my life. 

            Living in the United States is not always giving up things from my old life, but I also gained some things that I did not have before. Confidence is one example. I was a shy and unconfident person when I was in China. Since I came to the United States, I felt many people are confident and proud of themselves. As time passed by, I have learned a lot from them that I should always be proud of myself and desire good things in life. I love this attitude. Another thing is education. In the United States, people can be anyone they want to be and study anything they want to study, even if you are fifty years old. A lot of people choose to go back to school to learn new things to start their new lives at any age. On the other hand, society requires people to stick on their work and work hard to get the goal in China, even if they do not like it. In China, many people think that if a person changes a lot in their life, it means their life is unstable. I like the way Americans did. Life is limited, but what we can do is limitless. It changed the way I look at the world. 

My life in Chicago is not as easy as my life in China, but I still like it. Although I have to give up things to get what I want, I also have gained a lot that I learned from Americans. Even though I have not gotten used to the new life, I am trying to fit into the society and be part of it. I believe I can do it. It just about time and how hard that I try. 

Two Lives

Qiaohuan Ruan  

ESL 100 

October 15, 2023    

A new place has a new life. When people arrive in an unfamiliar country, they may be puzzled and afraid and it can be a huge challenge for them. People need to adapt to the new customs, cultures, and lifestyle. People might confuse who they are sometimes. When I came to Chicago, it was difficult for me to fit in this new place. Some of the culture or customs were weird for me and felt very crazy. The U.S culture is more individualistic, but Chinese culture is more communal. In China, kids are taught to follow communism. Those two different cultures made me confused when I came to the United States. 

          When I was a child in Guangdong, China, my parents, or seniors always taught me that I must always be an obedient person in the family because parents love their chirldren deeply. People should be the person what their parents want you to be. They should engage in the job what your parents want you to do. At that time, I thought they were right, and I had to follow them. Therefore, I was always followed my parents, and I never even knew what my own thoughts were. Afterwards, when I came to the United States, my friend told me that I should have my own ideas. She said this is the United States and everyone believes in freedom and is an equal individual. She said that there is equality. I grew up in a place where kids are always requested to be abidance in the family, but after my friend told me that I felt very weird.  Despite that was crazy for me, I tried to think about how to adapt in the new country and be closer to my friends. Because I had lived in Guangdong, China for many years, I felt difficulty changing the opinion which was deep-rooted in my heart. At last, I found the opinion in the United State fit me better and I changed my perspective to be myself. 

Since coming to the United States, I have also gained new ideas about paying more attention to my own personality development and respecting other people’s personality development and their opinions. Because people are equal and individual in this country, that means I need to recognize if someone tries to force people to follow them. When I decided to pick a major in childhood education, my mother really wanted to and tried her best to change my decision to learn accounting because she thought an accountant can earn a lot of money and never lose their job. However, I strongly rejected her suggestion because I wanted to follow my will to engage in the job I want. If I lived in China and I never came to the United States, I have no doubt to I would need to accept the suggestion from my mother. Additionally, this is a country where people are respected and encouraged for their personality development. I like this culture here, so I always tell my two sons that they do not need to follow anyone, only be themselves. If I stay living in China, I think I would like my parents to pick the after school classes depend on my hobbies for my sons. Now, I would allow my sons to choose the after school classes what they like. I also allow them to express their opinions and ideas in our family. 

 If people move to a new place is an opportunity to change their perspective and life, I had changed some opinions after I moved to the United States. Since I moved here, I really feel equality and freedom. I do not need to follow others to do somethings that I do not like. Additionlly, I learned to respect other people’s personality development and their opinions. I hope everyone can integrate increasingly into this new country with their efforts.