Kim Ju-Eun
Freshmen
Kookmin International School

The pilot announced that we were approaching the Philadelphia International Airport. It had been twenty-eight hours since the plane had taken off from Seoul. My legs ached from sitting so long, and my head throbbed. I had been so determined to leave Korea and study in America, but as I was getting ready to get off the plane, I was seized with mixed emotions of anxiety and excitement. I was finally in America.

I remembered how excited I was when I heard back from the University of the Arts that my application had been accepted. Even though it was my second trip to America, my heart pounded widely. It already had been two years since I had left America after completing the National Student Exchange Program. When I boarded the plane, I had confidence in myself that I would make this opportunity a success.

However, as I was following the bustling crowd to pass through the gate, I found myself worrying about my new life ahead. I knew no one in Philadelphia, and my command of English was not as good as before when I was living in Kentucky. I suddenly became frantic with fear. Would I understand people there? Would they be able to understand me? How would I compete with Americans? Would they like me? Would I like them? I had asked myself these questions since the moment I decided to keep studying in America, and yet I could not banish my own fears.

Fortunately enough, as the school year started out, my concerns gradually faded away. Although it took me several months to get used to speaking in English, I managed to take rigorous classes and build relationships with friends and professors. Going up to people and talking to them was not as hard as I imagined, but there was another serious problem. Since critiques - critical discussions of art works given by professors and students - were compulsory in all of my courses, I had to present my works in front of the whole class, and even worse, I was asked to give constructive criticism on the works of my peers. At first, I tried my best to keep my comments as short as possible and give only positive feedback to my classmates, as I was afraid of making grammatical mistakes and getting negative feedback in return. But soon, I realized that it was a ridiculous idea. By doing so, I was missing out on opportunities to improve my English and to acquire an insight for creating and appreciating arts. I thought I needed to change.

The first thing I did was to talk more in classes. Of course, from time to time, I felt ashamed of myself struggling to think of suitable words to describe my thoughts, but as time passed, I got better and better. As I tried talk more during classes, the professors and classmates helped me to use correct vocabulary, and through actively participating in class discussions, I became more confident in presenting my work and giving comments to others.

What I want to tell the readers is this: Do not be afraid of taking risks and experiencing adventures. I have met a few people who say that they are afraid of studying abroad, but you have to remember that you will not be able to move on to the next chapter of your life unless you step out of your comfort zone. Studying abroad can help you not only to experience new cultures but also to interact with people from different backgrounds, and more importantly, you will find yourself becoming more mature, self-confident, and independent. So why not give it a try? Do not forget that your youth is the time of adventure.

mintvi@naver.com

1. Working on a project with Kim's classmate
2. At 70's Diner Restaurant with host family
3. On the main street of the University of the Arts