Leaving home for the first time can be so unpleasant. The experience of being away from home can be a very difficult one, especially when it's one’s first time.
One can get sick from missing home, friends, or having to adjust to the new environment. However, it is also a chance to experience new things and an opportunity to grow.
Leaving to go to university was my very first time away from home. At first I was happy that I was going away from home, away from having a clash with my mum, and I said to myself that I would never miss home, but that part was a lie.
It was really scary to be away from home for the first time. I had never travelled alone or had any reason to be far away from home, and I needed to become more independent about doing things on my own.
Adjusting to the new situation was a big challenge for me. I often got homesick and wanted to go to the home I vowed never to miss.
My first year at school was really tough for me. I was nervous and sometimes do ask myself how I’m going to survive or ever adjust to the new environment. The thought of having to take care of myself was a horror. I’m used to my mum pampering me, even though we fight all the time.
I could remember how I used to call my mum when I was in 100 Level to ask her what to cook for myself. I am good at cooking, but I have never been in the position of deciding what to cook.
My friends then call me Mummy’s boy and make fun of me. Some will even tell me I’m still a baby that needs to be breast fed all the time, and we’ll all laugh about it.
After the first semester, I started adjusting and stopped being nervous, though one thing I never stopped doing was calling my mum to tell her how my day went, but I stopped asking her what to cook for myself.
After my first year at university, I was already independent enough that I decided to move off-campus and even pay the rent on my own.
I had already adapted to the new lifestyle before the end of year two, but I never stopped being that mummy’s little boy.
After year one and two at university, I stopped visiting home every break (mid-semester break, first semester break) but only during the session break, and I always leave early for school once the break is over.
Furthermore, I've been away from home since I graduated from school.
In conclusion, being away from home really built me into the man I am today. It taught me how to be self-reliant. It taught me new things and how to adapt to any situation I found myself in.