"Ladies and gentlemen, we are now landing at Tokyo Haneda airport. The local time is 1:15 PM and the temperature is 20 degrees Celsius. For your safety, please..." Finally, we arrived in Japan. I took out my backpack and checked one more time that everything was in there. Hotel reservation form, checked; Customs declaration form; checked; Disembarkation card; completed. When everything seemed ready to go, I checked with my parents to make sure that we were not missing any items. After that, I let a few Japanese sentences flow in my mind one last time before landing: "mittsu Basu tikito means bus tickets for three people and kodomoganai means we do not have any children." Moments later, when we finally picked our luggage, I opened notes on my phone and after quickly glancing it, rushed to the ticket office to buy bus tickets. There were other ways to get to the hotel but, after research, I found out that by bus is the most economical and simple way. When all seemed set, we got on the bus that would take us direct to the hotel I booked. After all, when my parents were resting in the hotel room, commenting how convenient the bus was, while I began to unpack our luggage, took out the schedule and suddenly became excited for the next few days.
Growing in a single child family, I was not a participating part of the family. As the only kid in the family, my family tries to offer me the best in everything. I was treated like a kid all the time where my parents would plan everything for me just like other Chinese parents. I could even see my preplanned future in middle school which would be similar to achieve good grades, get into colleges and work for a famous firm. But a sense of self consciousness and rebellion took over me in 7th grade. I realized that a traditional Chinese education was not for me. While everyone was busy with tests and exams, I discovered my interest in English studying and started to do extracurricular activities in English. I focused on the language study as much as possible which could be as insane as watching the entirety of Friends in a single summer. My hard work paid off when I could engage in physics, economics and English classes among native speakers at a US high school when I was an exchange student at Crystal Springs Uplands School in California. More importantly, I was impressed by how the American students are seeking a university education that emphasizes on "good fit" on a holistic perspective whereas a typical Chinese family would only take rankings of the school into account. What they are pursuing was not only academic achievement, but also a field of interest and thriving future. The concept of fighting for your own future rather than accept what's given you offered my a brand new way of viewing my life.
When my family trusted me to plan the visit to Japan, I was overwhelmed as I did not know where to start. I browsed through thousands of reviews just to find the perfect hotel. I refreshed the ticket booking websites several times a day just to seize the cheapest tickets. I also read countless blog of people sharing their experience in Tokyo. I did all these just to schedule the perfect trip for my family. And all the preparation paid off, we visited several tourist attractions that my family all loved, did shopping while using coupons I found online that guaranteed maximum discount, had authentic Japanese food that my mom missed till today.
I never understood why my parents assigned me the job of planning the trip. But what my mother said after the trip gave me a realization that I never experienced before. She said "Son, Your dad and I were suspicious on your decision to study abroad. But we were both amazed when showed your ability to be independent in the US. Now, after the trip, we are certain that you have grown-up, that you are not the little one you used to be. You have shown your independence as a grown-up."
After the one month in the US and the trip to Japan, I came to a realization that I am the master of my body and mind, that I am no longer a "spoiled single child" but a grown-up who is ready to get involved in a society without my parents help. My travelling experiences shaped me as a young adult and marked my transition from a child who listened to what his parents said and accepted his fate to a whole person who knows what he wants out of life. I am now ready to face the real society, alone.
Growing in a single child family, I was not a participating part of the family. As the only kid in the family, my family tries to offer me the best in everything. I was treated like a kid all the time where my parents would plan everything for me just like other Chinese parents. I could even see my preplanned future in middle school which would be similar to achieve good grades, get into colleges and work for a famous firm. But a sense of self consciousness and rebellion took over me in 7th grade. I realized that a traditional Chinese education was not for me. While everyone was busy with tests and exams, I discovered my interest in English studying and started to do extracurricular activities in English. I focused on the language study as much as possible which could be as insane as watching the entirety of Friends in a single summer. My hard work paid off when I could engage in physics, economics and English classes among native speakers at a US high school when I was an exchange student at Crystal Springs Uplands School in California. More importantly, I was impressed by how the American students are seeking a university education that emphasizes on "good fit" on a holistic perspective whereas a typical Chinese family would only take rankings of the school into account. What they are pursuing was not only academic achievement, but also a field of interest and thriving future. The concept of fighting for your own future rather than accept what's given you offered my a brand new way of viewing my life.
When my family trusted me to plan the visit to Japan, I was overwhelmed as I did not know where to start. I browsed through thousands of reviews just to find the perfect hotel. I refreshed the ticket booking websites several times a day just to seize the cheapest tickets. I also read countless blog of people sharing their experience in Tokyo. I did all these just to schedule the perfect trip for my family. And all the preparation paid off, we visited several tourist attractions that my family all loved, did shopping while using coupons I found online that guaranteed maximum discount, had authentic Japanese food that my mom missed till today.
I never understood why my parents assigned me the job of planning the trip. But what my mother said after the trip gave me a realization that I never experienced before. She said "Son, Your dad and I were suspicious on your decision to study abroad. But we were both amazed when showed your ability to be independent in the US. Now, after the trip, we are certain that you have grown-up, that you are not the little one you used to be. You have shown your independence as a grown-up."
After the one month in the US and the trip to Japan, I came to a realization that I am the master of my body and mind, that I am no longer a "spoiled single child" but a grown-up who is ready to get involved in a society without my parents help. My travelling experiences shaped me as a young adult and marked my transition from a child who listened to what his parents said and accepted his fate to a whole person who knows what he wants out of life. I am now ready to face the real society, alone.