My experience of living an extraordinary life

Time flies fast and we almost reach our destination, graduation is right in front of us. Five yrs of high school, a long and difficult journey, but also the start of our next exciting stage: adulthood. From the first day we entered the classroom, we have been preparing for this day. Now is the time to say goodbye and spread our wings – we are all ready to fly. As I get closer to the adulthood, I start to wonder what makes me the person I am right now? Back to Yr9, did you think about the kind of life you want to live or what change did you want to see that happen to yourself? I want you to ask yourself honestly if you are doing what it takes to make that vision happens. Are you choosing the safe route that everyone thinks you should take? Are you taking the actions in order to make your dreams come true? Are you creating the life you really want? Because the thing is if we want to live a life less ordinary, we have to do something beyond the ordinary. What makes me become the person right now and help me to enter the adult world is that I am willing to sacrifice. I have seen another life out there, but have chosen the path less travelled, less ordinary and this is my story.

Different from you guys, yr10 is my first year at Macleans College and is also the first year I study in a completely English educated school. 2015, I moved to New Zealand. On the day I left, I left everything I knew, I said goodbye to the people I cared for, I gave a million hugs and took a flight to the other side of the Pacific. 12 hours of flight, I have no idea what awaited me at the other end. The first day of school, when I stand on the second row and watch the haka, I saw them slapping with shouting and vigorous movements, instead of being touched I was shocked. The first time doing the row check, I didn’t even say ‘ Here’. I will never forget this experience but no matter how hard it was, I get through it. I realize changing lifestyle is hard and makes me feel frustrated but have a value: I begin living an extraordinary life. The scenery outside the window changes with everything and everyone I ever knew. Moving abroad is sacrificing your comfortable life in your hometown but how do we grow from the sacrifice rather than being trapped by them? Play with it.

At first, giving up your safety net is exhausting, you’re always not sure about the future. Of course, you don’t have to spend the rest of your life in this situation. You can live in a life which all your needs are met and you have zero stress but once you face those changes, you get to know parts of you that you never know existed. You’re amazed at what you become. You’re extraordinary in the world. I believe the challenges we face can help us create something inspiring. Those are our wake-up calls in the life, our lesson to live in a life less ordinary. I successfully made it: I sacrifice my comfort zone, I give up the guarantee of a normal life. Junior, the initial excitement of studying in a new country had worn off, the sign of homesickness starts to show and I missed my family back home. While you guys live with your family every day, I only have 30 minutes of face time with my parents. At school, when I feel confused or have problems, I constantly want to call my family, telling them everything in the new environment. Luckily, I notice people at home are still there to talk to, and I am not really alone–plus, they’re probably missing me as much as I miss them. It forced me to embrace greater independence and build self-reliance for I must provide. I had a close network to help out, now I have to rely on myself when times get tough.

Next year when going to university, not all of us will stay in Auckland, so we may leave our family. Sacrificing your time with family takes work to get through it, but it worth it. Believe me, once you remove the homesick glasses, you’ll be able to see everything in a new, more positive light. Giving up your family is painful, most people aren’t willing to do it but this is the sign of an extraordinary life. It will be the quickest time of your life also the most fun. Don’t leave with regrets, seize every new opportunity out there. Remember, you will feel homesickness when leaving your home but experiences and memories will last forever. I sacrifice my family life, I give up the people I love, I live in a life less ordinary. Senior, yr11 I did not study hard and I treated it as junior life with a lot of fun and a little effort. So when comes to the end of the year when mock results are released, I heard someone saying ‘ if Helen passed, then no one will get not achieved’. So I decided to change the way I used to have. Yr12, I work hard, I study effectively. Finally, I achieved my goals, I proved myself.

Surprisingly, when I recall it again, I feel thankful to the people who said that. Without them, I will not become the person I am and it gives me a chance for improvement. It brings incredible growth opportunities, I get to know that the problems I have. Not everyone will like you and this is a fact of life. Don’t try to please everyone, don’t sacrifice your forgiveness, you may miss some opportunities for learning about who you are. Underneath the layers of darkness, being hated is actually an amazing compliment from a vulnerable person. Using those negative responses as motivation to work harder, to succeed, to live in a life less ordinary. They tell you about your weakness that you may never found out. Remember, when you are being judged, instead of taking the hate to your heart, try to listen to what others have to say. It helps you to become an extraordinary person. I improved myself through those negative responses, I sacrifice my forgiveness, I give up the bitterness of being judged. Imagine if you wake up every day at exactly the same time, eat the same breakfast and study exactly the same lessons every day. Sounds a normal life but boring, doesn’t it?

Many people think their life has nothing excited or enjoyable. This is because they are unwilling to take risks and be forced to try again after getting knocked down. However, if you want to live in an extraordinary life, you have to give up your normal life. How to live in a life less ordinary is that how you define the word extraordinary. To me, it is sacrificing: sacrifice comfort zone, sacrifice family life and sacrifice forgiveness. To you guys, it can be taking action to fulfil your dreams. It can be interacting with others: give a little bit of extra smile. It can also be living with passions: celebrating every success that happens no matter how small. If you want to live in an extraordinary life no one else is living, you’ll have to start living a life no one else does. We are getting closer to the adulthood and we are all ready to face the difference. Opportunities are there for everyone and don’t be afraid of paying the costs of an extraordinary life. Take the risks and play with the challenge, we can all manage to live in a life less ordinary.