No Pain, No Gain

By the time we actually moved, these expectations had become the newest part of my personality. Force a smile and do not tell anyone how much you actually hate Arizona and everything about it; the dry heat jokes, the snowless winters, the lack of extended family, everything. The worst part of the whole situation was that I was trying to stay involved with my friends back home while they were moving forward with their lives. I was stuck in the past and miserable because of it. I slowly but surely learned that I was happier when I was making friends in Arizona while periodically checking in with my old friends than I was when I was trying to ignore everyone in my new home state. I would consider that the turning point from my childhood to my adulthood. I went from acting immature, childish, oblivious, and obnoxious to being mature, happy, and responsible. Without this move, I am not sure when or how I would have ever made this necessary transition to adulthood. Although my freshman year was hard because of the move, looking back on it now, I am extremely grateful for this experience, which gave me the shove I needed to finally grow

I didn’t want to have to leave my friends in Nashville and be forced to make new ones in Atlanta. I didn’t want to get used to another new house or another city. I just wanted to stay in the only place I could call home. As the day of my departure approached, I thought of running away, so I wouldn’t have to move and my dad could keep his job in Atlanta. Thankfully, I never went through with it. When the day finally arrived, I was everything but ready. My mom had picked my brother up from school early to help move boxes out of the house and into our car while the movers haled broken down beds, and other pieces of furniture into their industrial moving trucks. Once everything was packed into trucks, paper work was finished and dogs were loaded in the car, we began the long 4-hour trip to Atlanta as dusk made its way to the sky. The trip itself was a calm one, we managed to avoid any major accidents on the highway, and we were traveling around 8 o’clock so the traffic had died down. As we drove I couldn’t help but think back to the friends I left and what was to come

Since 2012, I have moved 3 times. The first move was definitely the hardest of all the moves. My entire life was turned upside down right before high school. I was happy to move, but it was a complete change. I had to relearn how to live, and I suddenly had to be the one to care for my younger siblings.

Have you ever moved? I have and It’s hard, packing up and moving along with leaving any friends or family behind. Moving to a place you only visit once a year is, though, also I have only seen a small part of this state, the area by my grandma’s house. The summer of 20ll was a rough time. It was the year we moved from Florida to Kansas because my mom found a better job.

Moving is hard for everyone, because you're leaving your friends and maybe some family. There are some good opportunities to make new friends and meet new people. You could also start over and maybe remove all the weight off your back if it's like drama, or maybe wondering if someone is going to like you. There is also an upside of seeing new things you maybe

So far in my life I have moved eight times and been to twelve different schools. I’m not talking about just moving houses. I’m talking about eight times, packing all of my things and moving to a whole different state. In all this I have learned the most important quality that anyone needs to get through all of the hardships and changes in moving. That quality is courage.

And then she turned to me. I felt special that she had saved me for last. I smiled at her, and she did the same to me. We had grown inseparable over the past few years especially, but now it was time to say goodbye. I knew at that point that nothing at all would change, that we would still be sisters, still be best friends, still be inseparable. Who cares if we’re 5 ½ hours away? This was us.

Coming from a different county was difficult for me because it was hard to fit in with others. And also because there was a language barrier between other people and that was detriment for me from communicating with other people. When my dad transferred here in Hawaii to work, he was by himself with his siblings. He started petitioning us so that he could bring us in the US. It took years for the process to be over because there were complications with visa, passport information and birth certificates.

The most difficult time i have faced was when I moved from Texas. I was born in San Antonio, Texas and I lived there for about 6 years. San Antonio was so much fun just because y enitre famly lived withing 10 minutes of each other. Then, we had to move to Midland, Texas, that move was not very hard just because i was so young so i was not ery attatched to things and people around me, besides my family. We lived in Midland for about 4 years after that and it was my favorite town. The people the energy of the people there was so awesome I loved it. Then one day we got the call that had to move again. We were already pretty far from our family and so to learn that we had to move even farther was devistating. So thats when we had to leave the state

“Where are we going?” She then looked at me and said, “We’re moving to Texas.” Out of all places, Texas? We lived in southern California our whole lives, so moving to Texas was definitely a shock to me. “What about our family and friends?” Her eyes began to water, so I knew talking about it further would only make things worse. Texas. It was stuck in my head and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. The more I thought of it, the worse it sounded. The worst part was that it was so sudden, so it didn’t seem real. Because my parents are divorced, I spent the weekends at my dad’s house. He was torn that I was leaving Riverside, which of course meant that weekend visits would turn

Moving is common to do among people, but moving to a different state is nerve wracking. I was sad to know I was leaving my home behind for good. But I was even more excited to see what my future held in Colorado. There was nothing to do in Arizona and no one to hang out with. Moving state is a very important turning point in my life.

My upsetting times they were bad and it was usually something that involved moving but not always like the time I had to move from Virginia to South Dakota I didn’t know what I would do there I didn’t know whether if I would have fun and I didn’t know a lot of people. I also didn’t know what there was to do so I usually just stay away from moving if possible. I especially hated changing schools because I did not know their rules so you are trying to adjust to the rules and you usually break one then you continue to learn about the rules.

The idea of moving to a different state or country can be terrifying for most people. I know for me it was. I was born and raised in New Jersey and had a decent job. Life was going great for me; at least that is what I thought. I had a lot of friends and family that had been around me my whole life. Moving away from all of this was not an option for me, until I got married and had children. By the time my daughter hit five years old, I was rushed to make a decision that would change my life forever. I had to decide whether I wanted her to go to school in New Jersey or Key West. This meant leaving my friends and family behind, and somehow depriving my children from growing up around their family.

As the end of the night approached us, I couldn’t stop thinking about how many mixed emotions I had about starting a whole new chapter in my life. I couldn't wait to go to college, meet all new people, get a degree so that I could start my career path, but I knew that meant I had to say goodbye to my two best friends, who were moving several hours away from me. This was one of the hardest things I had ever had to do in my life. We all cried a little, and then made promises to keep in touch, and then we were off into the real world! I was very happy to be at this point in my life, but I was scared deep down inside.

I’ve lived in three different states and attended six schools over the past eight years. Relocating from Texas to Michigan, and later Michigan to Georgia were big adjustments for me. I missed my friends and close relatives. However, I knew I had to make the best of my circumstances. Through these experiences, I began to learn to be more flexible, become more open-minded to different traditions, and be adventurous in different parts of the country-I played volleyball, joined a dance team, and even went skiing! At school, I also focused on excelling in my classes and challenge myself like I did when adjusting to a new town.