“Flight 1772 on BMI will be boarding soon.” These words are announced over the PA system. I’m at Manchester airport with my mom and sister. I thought this day would never come.

We are preparing to leave England after living here for eight years. Transitioning back to U.S. life will be tough. After all, my sister and I have the finest of friends in England and had assimilated into British life—even developing an accent. Seeing the tears in my mom’s eyes, my sadness lingers inside of me.

My mom and sister don’t want to leave and are not eager to depart. We don’t have much of a choice though. Sitting in the gate lounge, I run through every luminous memory of England. My friends at school, cricket, the restaurants in town, and the 20 different countries my family and I have traveled to. My dad says to us, “You and your sister have seen more than I ever saw in history textbooks.” There was truth to his statement, but all books come to an end.
I keep wondering. Would I fit right in or would I stand out? After all, I was an American—just not a pure one. I spent my first 5 years of life in the U.S., yet I don’t know a whole lot about it. The final call is made and we climb aboard the plane and depart. Goodbye England, thanks for everything.

We arrive at our freshly purchased home and I still question what this new life will be like. It’s our home now and we haven’t actually owned one in 8 years. My dad says, “It’s time to move on with our lives and we’re going to make it work for us all.” I hope he speaks the truth.
Five years have passed since I left and things are going well. I’ve played on the high school golf team, dribbled a basketball on a school court, hit a baseball for the first time, made new friends, and have matured a little every day. Perhaps making a transition from one country to another isn’t so hard. Maybe it’s just what I needed. It’s the beginning of something new. It’s now time for me to face the challenges that are out there in the world. Yet I often ask myself what if I never moved? Then what? Honestly, who knows? For now I’m focused on taking the next step and moving forward.

This transition has transformed back to a usual American. Many people undergo a strong change and must adjust to it. I am ready to take on the next transition of my life, ready to leave my parents house and march down the boulevard of my future. And I am not afraid.