Personal Narrative: My Experience Of Moving To A New Home

Home is an intimate place in which one’s domestic affections are centered. That is not the case for most of my life. Throughout my life, I have considered various locations as home. I was born in a small city in southeastern China, and lived in my grandparents’ house until I was eight. That was when I immigrated to the United States with my Dad. Although it was a fascinating experience, it was also my first time leaving my home country and integrating into a new culture. It was also the first time that I was introduced to a new language other than Mandarin. The occasional modification of homes directly impacted my ability to adapt to new societies and assimilate into the new culture.
My first impression of the United States was the busy …show more content…
Although I was able to stay close to my home, it was a struggle to learn the basics and do well in school. Some ideas in school were completely foreign to me, such as writing poetry and summaries for books. I began with learning the alphabets, and attended summer school to improve my reading skills. According to educators, teenagers who arrive unable to read in any language face tremendous pressure to earn an independent living while racing to catch up on more than a decade of academic building blocks. It was nearly impossible to learn in class without understanding the teacher or knowing how to ask questions. According to New York City’s Department of Education, the graduation rate of students classified as “Interrupted Formal Education” was only 29 percent, compared to the overall rate of 62 percent. During the Summer, I spent time in my Great-aunt’s house in New Jersey. I had a remarkable time there, learning kayak and going to the arcade. It was shocking to see an unfamiliar distant relative adapting so well to the …show more content…
I became close friends with a small group of students that have similar classes with me. I began catching up to the education of my grade level, and learned subjects such as science, history, computer science, and algebra. I was able to complete four full years at this school with perfect attendance. On August, 2008, Hurricane Gustav stroke Louisiana and forced my family to evacuate. It was my first time experiencing a devastating natural disaster, which heavily impacted my home and school. Despite the trouble with communication, we evacuated safely for a week to Las Vegas, California. After recovering from the hurricane, we moved to a small apartment near my school. Although the apartment was smaller than the original house, I was able to have peace and privacy. The apartment located in a friendly neighborhood, so I was able to ride my bike and walk to the bus stop by myself. It was also there that my mom gave birth to my younger