It’s been almost two years since I came to Japan. I have experienced various things. When I first arrived, I was worried because I was not good at Japanese and knew nothing about Japan. Japan and Vietnam are completely different. The first time I rode the subway, I thought Japan was truly wonderful.
Studying abroad means living alone in another country and working part-time. My part-time job is newspaper delivery. Every day, I wake up at 2:30 am and deliver newspapers on my bike. I also work in the afternoon, delivering about 430 newspapers a day.
At first, I thought living alone and working was interesting and liberating, but after three months, I started feeling lonely and found the work challenging. Eating alone without my mother to cook for me felt lonely. Also, I had to climb many stairs every day. So, I wondered, “Why do my colleagues who work with me always finish early and have fewer newspapers to deliver?” When I first started, my whole body ached so much that I couldn’t get up after sleeping. Especially in the summer, the intense heat from the sun was very troublesome.
One day, my bike was stolen while I was working. I ran to the newspaper store and reported it to the manager. That alone was not unusual, but strange things happened afterward. That morning, my mobile phone that I had left on the bike was found in front of the police station. A week later, I found my helmet near my house. The next day, I didn’t want to go out, but I had to work. Even now, I feel scared while delivering.
But there were good times, too, even when I cried. Everyone at the store is kind. Especially the manager, who always teaches me things I don’t understand. When I made a wrong delivery, he didn’t scold me but explained it to me in detail. Also, the teachers at school are enthusiastic and teach me kindly, even when I make mistakes.
Maybe I have become more adult-like as two years have passed, but I have gotten used to life in Japan. I can do things now that I couldn’t do before. My friends in Vietnam are now third-year university students, and I’m a little worried that I’m not in university yet. But I have grown more and more in Japan and have become mentally stronger. I will soon graduate from Japanese language school and plan to enter university.
I don’t know what I will do in the future, but I will study hard until I achieve my goals.