As an eight-year-old-girl, it was my first time on an airplane, traveling from my home in India to the United States with my mom and brother. I sat on the airplane for seventeen hours and felt restless just sitting in my seat. I was wrapped in my blanket and was watching a television show called Friends on the small screen TV in front of me. To be honest, I wasn’t paying attention to any of the dialogue because I was lost in my thoughts and in my anxiety of moving to America. I still had trouble absorbing the fact that I had just left my friends, my family, my home, and my country behind. As I was looking at the map on the screen, the flight attendant’s announcement came on, “Ladies and gentlemen, we ask that you remain seated and fasten your seatbelt. We will be landing shortly at the San Francisco airport.” The second I heard the announcement, I broke free from my blanket and looked down through the window. It was the most beautiful scene I had ever seen. I saw the tall buildings, houses lined up side by side, the curvy roads and bridges, and the greenery of the trees and the hills. At that moment, I realized that I was first looking forward to my new life in USA. I was heartbroken and sad about leaving my old life behind, but I felt anxious and excited to see what my new life was going to offer me in this unknown world.
I was born and raised for eight years in India. My family and I lived in a four story apartment building with seven other families and their kids. All of our families were very close, because we share a huge history together. The parents knew each other before the kids were born. While the dads went to work in the same company, the moms would get together and go shopping or gossip. After a couple of years, all the kids were born, and we became close like the parents did. My friends and I would ride bicycles together and we all went to the same school. We attended a school that includes grades from preschool to grade twelve. We attended each other's first birthday parties. Our parents shared our first steps and first words with each other. We knew each other since we were practically babies, so I have this connection with them that I don't have with my other friends in USA. We knew each other so well that we were like family, and I got so comfortable in this environment that I hated the idea of moving.
Life in America is completely different compared to my life in India. As my father drove us to our new house in California after he picked us from the airport, all I saw was open space and emptiness. I lived in a town in India where there were always people walking and cars honking on the road. I was surrounded by noise every day, so it never occurred to me that there could be any place as quiet and empty in the world. The only thing I liked when I first saw America was its cleanliness and its organization. I liked how everyone follows the rules and how everyone drove their car in their own lane. India is totally the opposite of United States where people just throw their garbage on the side of the road, and no matter how many times the city officials paint lanes on the road, no one seems to want to use them. When we arrived in the city of Tracy, I was happy to see that my dad bought a house that has five bedrooms, an office room, three bathrooms, and two living rooms. My house seemed like a mansion when I first put my foot inside, because my home in India was three times as small. As much as I was enjoying and was getting used to the everyday life in my mansion, I still had to get used to my outside life as well. I felt excited that my brother and I had a chance to live in this luxurious life in a well-developed country, but my anxiety kicked in when my dad came into my room and said that my first day of school would start on Monday.
Going to a new school after moving to a new country can be exciting, but also overwhelming and confusing. I had just finished my first grade in India, so when I arrived in U.S.A., I was going to attend second grade. I remember my first day in school. My mom had just dropped me off at the front of the building. As I turned around after saying my “goodbyes”, my heart started to beat faster and faster and a knot was forming in my stomach. I was afraid of being left out because of my inability to communicate. Some students assumed that I did not understand them completely, so they started making rude remarks about me. The truth is that I did understand them, not completely, but enough to get the message. I spent at least two weeks of school sitting all alone by myself at lunch watching the kids play jump rope or tag while I ate my sandwich. I went home frustrated every day, complaining to my parents about how much I hated school and how I missed all my friends in India. My parents convinced me to give it some time, and I took their advice, which paid off. Over time, my English improved, and I was one of the fastest readers in class. Even when I didn’t volunteer to read out loud, the other students would raise their hand to suggest to the teacher that I should read. I started getting 100 percent on my quizzes, and everyone thought I was a genius. Not so long after, I started making more friends, and felt happy because I was enjoying school. Not only did I get used to my everyday life at home, but I got used to my outside life at school. As much fun as making and meeting new friends was, adapting to the school environment was the most difficult stage I experienced during this transition.
Living in the U.S. now for almost nine years has made me adapt to the life and culture here. Despite the fact I still miss my family in India, I’m enjoying my life in America so far. I look forward to going to school every day, I love living in my house, and I like hanging out with my friends.
what can i add to this paragraph to make it longer.
Living in the U.S. now for almost nine years has made me adapt to the life and culture here. Despite the fact I still miss my family in India, I’m enjoying my life in America so far. I look forward to going to school every day, I love living in my house, and I like hanging out with my friends.
what can i add to this paragraph to make it longer. i'm stuck write now on what to write
Do you need to make it longer or is it time to tie it together?
As someone who moved to the exact opposite - from the suburbs of Cincinnati to a crappy, noise-filled small town in Taiwan where people can't drive, I understood this completely and loved the essay.
I think somehow tying it together and finishging it up would be perfect at this point unless you're required to write more in your essay.
Matt