A Teenager’s Guide To Moving Countries

Moving countries is not easy.

In fact, it is darn difficult. I recently moved to England from South Africa, and it was probably the hardest thing I have ever had to do. In fact, moving is rated by experts as being one of the most stressful life events, after death and divorce. Pretty serious stuff! There is a lot of preparation, irritation, and heartache involved in moving. But the good news is that a lot of the stress can be eliminated, and you can even enjoy moving, if you are positive and well organized.After just having moved, I feel like I am quite the expert, and I know some of the things that may be going through your head, so I will try and give you some help.

I don't want to leave my friends! This was probably the hardest part about moving. I had lived in the same town for my whole life and had put down some serious roots. I had known most of my friends for as long as I could remember, and I couldn't even comprehend the idea that I was going to leave them. I sort of blocked that thought out until the last minute. I cried a lot the day before we left as each of our friends came to say goodbye.

I had thought a lot about leaving, but it didn't register in my brain, and it didn't hit me that I was leaving my country until I was on the plane and I saw the little animation on the screen of the aeroplane flying over and away from Africa. And even in England, it took me awhile before I got out of my old routine, and stopped wondering why my bedroom walls had all of a sudden shrunk, and the window changed position. Now you may be wondering, "How can I avoid this heartache? I don't want to go through that! " I have discovered that there are two solutions to this problem.The first is what I call the "I hate humanity, and all that goes with it.

And I hate you as well. " approach. It involves never making any friends at all, and requires not putting down anything remotely root-like. Be unfriendly to everyone and establish a well-grounded hate for the place that you live in. Never get a girlfriend or boyfriend and never go to school or church or to the movies or anywhere with other humans.

Be bitter and sarcastic to people when you are forced to speak to them. I haven't explored all of the benefits of this method, but one of them is that you and the people around you will be more than happy to part ways.For some very scary people this may be the solution. I personally find it a bit extreme, and maybe a touch masochistic. But don't let my views cloud your judgement! I chose the next option.

Unfortunately, I am not sure that you are going to like it any more than the previous one. It is called "Time heals All". This method requires you to wait for time and memories to run their course. For the first 2 to 3 weeks the only "to-do" on my agenda was lying in bed, eating sweets and wishing I was back home. I was so sad that I couldn't even look at letters and photos sent from home. Remember that there is going to be sadness.

But if it turns into full-scale depression, and turns you into a miserable, ineffective, sad useless person, then that is wrong, and you should do something about it. Do something that takes your mind off home, like looking for a job, or exercising, or scratching your head, or anything that requires your mind to be engaged in something else. The quicker you find something to do, the easier it will be to settle in, and get on with your life. I don't think I'm ever going to make new friends! Will I fit in with "them"? This is another major stress factor for many, and I was no exception.I worried that I would be totally out of place and unaccepted, because of my South African accent and different ways.

But my worries were largely unfounded. Fitting in is not as difficult as everyone makes it out to be. Be friendly and confident, and make an effort to talk to people, and you will find that soon you are making loads of new friends. I am happy where I am. "Why do we have to move if I am happy where I am? My Ouma Juliana has lived in the same town for all her life and she is perfectly happy. " You don't want to disrupt your rhythm? Life is fine as it is? I lived in the same town for 17 years.

I was very settled and comfortable with life. I didn't want to change it. But there need to be times in your life when you step out of your comfort zones. You are going to have to move away from your home sometime. That is just a fact.

Whether it is to university, or when you get a job, or whatever, the fact is that you are sometime going to have to leave your little nest. This is a part of life we all have to learn to deal with. And it all boils down to the attitude that you take to moving. If you see moving as something horrible and negative, it will be much harder and take much longer for you to adapt than if you are positive about it.So make an effort to look for the positive aspects.

How much and how should I pack? The most important thing about packing is that you think very carefully about what you will need. I very expertly avoided this bit of advice. My brain switched off, and I ended up packing all sorts of bizarre, unnecessary junk. (I remember something about a broken blue stress-ball.

Don't ask! ) Find out when and if the movers are bringing your household stuff over, and pack up the things in your room that you will want later on. The bits and pieces that you want to take over with you immediately should go in your aeroplane bag.On the plane, you are allowed one luggage bag of 20kgs and two pieces of hand luggage totalling 5kgs. In my fat aeroplane bag, I put my clothes and other gear that I thought I would need immediately (i. e.

CD's, earphones, sweets), and in my hand luggage I put things like toiletries and some water and other random things that didn't fit in my big bag. A vital thing to have is some sort of other little bag on you to keep your passport, wallet, air ticket, boarding pass, and any other papers that the airline might sling at you.You need to flash your passport and ticket quite often, so keep them near at hand, but safe, because I am not sure how much it will help your cause if you lose your passport and ticket just before leaving. My family is driving me up the wall! I think that I have said this a couple of times! Being cooped up with no one except your family for long periods of time can be very trying.

Now this is the test. The test is whether you can sometimes overlook your own personal comfort and be nice.Don't be a doormat, obviously, and constantly compromise all your personal needs (i. . bathing, brushing teeth, changing clothes), but try your hardest to be nice.

Your whole family is going to be feeling weird, it is new for them too, so you should all try to accommodate everyone's feelings. And if you are really at the end of your fuse, and can't think of anything else besides destroying something, just go somewhere on your own, like for a walk, or read a book, or something. A big fight is the last thing that you need. Don't feel resentful if your niceness is not directly noticed, or if no one says, "Wow, Joe you're being so nice!Thank you so much! I think you are amazing! " Don't think, "This is for the birds" and give up.

Maybe you can't see any difference, but it is making an impact on the others around you. And it will really make life that much more bearable. As you may have picked up, moving isn't easy. These are a few of the issues you may have to deal with. But if you are positive about it, you will be rewarded with an easier and less stressful move. And, surprising as it may seem, time does plod on, with or without you.

It's up to you to stay on the ride.