Personal Narrative: My Transition From China To The US

Words: 574
Pages: 3

Looking back on my life, I realize how privileged I am to be in America. Now I don't mean to sound cliche. I know you may want to put down my essay into that pile of “typical immigrant essays”, but, I truly do feel privileged. Not only am I able to live the dream of attending school for free, but also I am given the same opportunities at success. Coming from China, my life had not always been so easy. The year 1998, my birth year was a time when China’s One Child policy was at its strictest moment, and when infanticide was at its most extreme. At the time, my mother was pregnant with me, but had to become prisoner to her own home, deprived of light and food in fear that her swelling belly would become too noticeable since I was the second child. The corruption in the country ultimately persuaded my family and me to move to the United States in the hopes of a more prosperous life, and a chance for my siblings and me to have a better education. …show more content…
In elementary school, my classmates would mock me with racial slurs because I could not speak English, while I stayed quiet, unable to defend myself. I was angry I felt like an outsider, aspiring to diffuse into a world that did not accept me. I felt frustrated and betrayed by the fact that citizens of a country that had such strongly declared the equality of all was the exact opposite. Despite this, I found solace in reading. Often at night, I used a flashlight under my blanket when my mom told me it was bedtime so that I could finish reading in the dark. A wave of content washed over me every time I finished a book and started another one. As a result, my English began to improve dramatically and I began to enjoy attending school. I made new friends, I talked more, and I gained the confidence and acceptance I had wanted since the beginning. I