Blue Saturn

          Life is a hard challenge. It is not a big deal to feel blue sometimes, but most things work out in the end. This is what my grandmother told me before I left Algeria. My land was my home, my mother, and where I belong to. I never thought of leaving my land before. After some time, I realized that I had to go through this experience. Of course, happiness is hiding somewhere, and I must find it. Due to this, I had to adopt living in the united states and never giving up.

         

 

          The day the challenge started was my first day in Chicago. In the morning, I opened the window as I used to do every morning in Algeria, but everything was empty. I said, " this is not the end ". I went out for a walk. I was not thinking too much, and suddenly I found my first safe place, a beautiful lake. I started going there every morning to refresh my mind. Chicago was like Saturn to me, a big circle and I had to make life better on Saturn. However, I met three young women Sadie, Taylor, and Julia, my gorgeous friends in Indiana. We meet on the church bus every Sunday, and they helped me to feel confident to speak English. They consider me one of them, which means they never make me feel any different. Even though I was not Christian, they respected and accepted me the way I am. In addition, on the Fourth of July, the day of independence, my Mexican neighbors  invited me to celebrate with them, and I enjoyed every second of it. I tried some delicious Mexican food and played with fireworks. All these experiences make me realize that I felt happy and free in Chicago, because I can be myself, and no one gives me odd looks. I am a slave of freedom, feeling is all I really care about, and I found it here in Chicago.

         Moreover, even though I am happy, I had some tough times trying to adapt to the fast life in Chicago, because everything works with technology. In Algeria, I was using pen and paper to study, to do my homework, and for exams. However, in Chicago I had to switch everything to the technology. Now, I do my homework on Brightspace, and submit the majority of my assignments there. As I remember my education in Algeria, I can also reflect on how my traditional food tastes. I will not say food in this city is not delicious, but for me it is new, like the sweet sausage, because in Algeria, Algerian people do not add sugar while cooking, and it is totally different from the food in Chicago. I tried hard to accept it, but i just cannot.

 

             Furthermore, the saddest part of this new life is how my traditions are fading away over time. In Algeria, my family and I used to celebrate traditional and religious rituals like Aid Al-Adha and Aid Al-Fitr. When Muslim people wake up early to pray all together in the Mosque, then sacrifice a lamb to cook with it some traditional plates like couscous. Even when we try to enjoy it now, it does not feel the same. Due to this reason, I miss the old days in my homeland, when people around the country celebrate together, when the sound of children laughing filled the place, their laughter was my favorite song.

 

          Nevertheless, life is starting to be better on Saturn. It will never be the same, but it can be better one day, because I can make it better. I still miss the old days, but remembering them is not hurting me like before. Even if there is still a burden on my heart as I remember how my grandmother used to wash me with love, or how my home had hugged me every time I feel cold, life goes on. I believe that the happy ending is waiting. If I am blue now, it is not the end yet.