Finding Home in China

This has been my first week in China, Wuxi. I have learned so much already. This is the beginning of a great life, learning experience. I cannot still believe that I am here.  Since I was a little kid my favorite movie was Mulan the Chinese Disney movie. I loved that movie and I always was intrigued by the Chinese culture— the landscape, the music, the language, and the people. Now I am seated at my desk with the beautiful and  wonderful city of Wuxi in full view.

I am from Guatemala city, Guatemala. I’ve lived in United Stated the last three years, and I served my mission in Peru Lima. I have had the experience of living in different countries and learning from their cultures.  I am amazed by how diverse the world is and how so many different cultures make the world a better and more colorful place. Every single human is unique and has a world to develop in their own mind. Observing people here around me and in the school, Wuxi Art Academy, it made me ask the question of what is home for each of us. What make us feel at home?

Doing a study abroad with my friends from a different culture than mine, and beyond that, living in an Asian country experiencing a different culture, made me wonder about my own home and my own culture.

Home is where the people you love are. Home is where your soul can rest and laugh. My home might not be the same than yours but it is still home. Every culture is unique and different but that doesn’t mean that one is better than the other one. We all live under the same sky and we all receive warmth  from the same sun.

I missed home this week. Feeling that you have no home or that you don’t fit in anywhere, it is an undesirable feeling, it has a bitter taste and heavy weight. But I learned that home is where you are right now. I am thousands of miles separated from the people I love, but they are still with me, I carry them with me. I might not be in my country, I might not have them physically with me but I am reaching my goals, I am living my dreams, I am having unforgettable experiences and that makes me feel like home.

In a not too distant future, I will be with my family and other friends and the experiences I have learned here, will help me to create a better home there. This culture exchange experience  is my dream coming true, it is helping to build my home inside me.  I am excited to learn from my Chinese brothers and learn from their lovely and majestic culture to make a better person of myself, to reach my dance and life goals and to make a better home wherever I am.

Home is me, home is happiness, home is smiling, home is enjoying life, and home is working for a better future around the people I love, learning from others and their cultures.

Guatemala, Peru, United States, and China you all are my home.