Wednesday, October 16, 2024

Lost in Translation - Weichen Zhang (Dawson)

Pain and Happiness

I am good at adapting to new environments. When I was in my hometown, Shenyang, in China, I always imagined the view of Chicago and my feelings about the local customs. I confidently thought I could adapt to everything as quick as possible. When I landed in Chicago, I found the view of the city was beautiful and modern, which let me to feel comfortable and happy. However, the most terrible situation which I couldn’t adapt is that hot water is so hard to find in restaurants. It is painful to start a new habit to drinking ice water. In other words, both of these both experiences have given me a new perspective on living in this city.

 Initially, the city view of Chicago made me feel deeply amazing, which could give me bravery to live in this city. Compared to Chicago, my hometown seems like a small village hidden in the mountains. On the one hand, my hometown does not have any buildings as tall as the buildings in Chicago, and l feel so impressed when I see the city which is grouped up by so many tall buildings. On the other hand, Chicago has a big lake, which is like a sea, but my hometown just has one river which is not wide or large. I used to take a walk with my friends along the lakeside when the sun was setting, and the view was so beautiful and romantic. The sky was wrapped in a soft pink, and the light of sun was reflected by the water, which let the lake seem like gold. The memory of the view of that evening is like a soft wind which can always blow my soul. Both of the two views in Chicago helped me adapt to the city quickly, and they still give me courage to explore the city. In other words, the beautiful views made me want to live in Chicago longer and adapt to everything even though I feel terrible at times.

 Nevertheless, even though the city view of Chicago is fascinating, I had a bad time adapting to one particular custom -drinking ice water. The most terrible experience is that the simple custom of drinking water has been hard to adjust to. A lot of Chinese people, including myself, prefer to drink hot water instead of ice water. When I was a kid, my mother always let me drink hot water and told me it is good for my health, so l built up the habit. Everything changed when I came to Chicago. Although I could still drink hot water at home, whenever I went out and ate outside with my friends, the server in the restaurant gave me one cup of water filled with ice under my surprising sight. I can definitely say that not one restaurant in my hometown only provides ice water, and many places such as train stations, hospitals and schools provide hot water too. It is a struggle for me to drink only ice water. Fortunately, my stomach has adapted to drinking a lot of ice water, so I tried to adapt to this custom and built up a new habit. I always drink cold milk in the morning and accept the ice water in the restaurant, which is a new experience and start for me. In simpler terms, I am taking my first step to the new world.

Regardless of the gorgeous views or the new life habits, I can deal with them because I have a strong determination to discover the world. At the same time, the new environment and custom can give me a completely new perspective on living in a new world. These new experiences could hurt, but they will ultimately cure me too. Like a storm that uproots trees, the chaos may seem destructive at first, yet it clears the way for new growth. I can feel the world by walking with my feet, but l also can feel them in my heart. The new perspectives have helped me realize the world deeper and wider, so l need to continue my experience regardless of whether the experiences are good or bad.