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Living Abroad

I came from the Philippines. Just the summer of last year, I flew to Denmark for work opportunities. I transferred in the US thereafter for a better work offer. I don't know if this is normal or not but I seem to miss my country every now and then. The simplicity of life in my hometown is irreplaceable. However, staying and going back to the Philippines would not be an option for me right now because it would never feel the same.

For the reason that, living abroad is one of the most satisfying and challenging things a person can do. It altered the core of who I thought I was and who I am now. Living abroad changed me.

 It changed me to a person I once were. Living outside my comfort zone is the most profound undertaking I had ever done yet the most rewarding. The scenery changes, people change, the food menu is different and the climate is unpredictable. Everything and Everyone I once knew were gone.
I grew, evolved and moved on. I faced setbacks and dealt with them on my own and have numerous hidden scars to prove it.
Some that were once significant no longer matter and there are some I considered less significant, matter more.  Familiarity is a forgotten concept.
Moving abroad made me realize that things do not equal happiness. And my idea of how success was, totally changed, from money and career to loved ones. 
In this journey I had been through, I met different people, learned different cultures and languages, and most of all,
I learned about myself 
It is also hard for me to reside back home. I could if I wanted to but it won't ever be the same. While I faced all the hurdles of reaching my dreams and aspirations, life at home carried on as before. People went to work, my family multiplied, they holidayed, they had birthdays, they got married, they changed jobs and they moved house.
Although everything appears to have stayed the same, the truth is that life at home moved on without me and I am aware of it. This is the biggest risk I have to take when I moved abroad. I can have all the adventures I want to take but I cannot have the life I once had  and all I can do is watch from the sidelines as people carry on.
At some point, I realized I cannot go back to my life before. My former life moved on, I moved on, and little by little, we are slowly moving apart.
It's a harsh reality but I have to face up to it.
Although there are downsides of living abroad, there are also upsides that goes with it. My world becomes bigger. The moment I set foot outside of my country , my world grew in size.
New friends, new sights, smells and sounds opened up before me.
And now there's no turning back.


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