Tzuria Roichman, Eighth Grade, RPRY, Edison, New Jersey
Very soon, an incredibly important, special and crazy period in my life will end, and I’ll return to my home, Israel. I came with my family to the United States in 2020 for five years because of my dad’s research work at Princeton. Staying in America for so long has given me a lot, but has also made me miss things, in a lot of different ways.
Learning a new language was very, very hard, especially because of Covid. The masks that covered our mouths made it very difficult to learn and understand. Learning a brand new language is supposed to take about half a year, and it took me two. But learning English was also extremely valuable. It’s a skill that I’ll have forever and that will help me a lot in my life, whether for high school or even for finding a job later on.
When I first arrived here, I was really excited and ready to start this new adventure. I would be lying, though, if I didn’t say that this excitement slowly faded with time. It was different from what I expected it to be—way more challenging. I was only ten years old, and it was a lot for me to handle. I was basically starting my life completely from scratch. I didn’t know anyone here, I didn’t know what was fine or not okay to say, nor did I know the different holidays here, like Thanksgiving! In order to go through all of that, I had to become stronger and more mature. Today, I am so grateful for having the ability to get through difficult moments here.
