As the semester comes to an end, so does my journey here in Boston. Honestly, I didn’t think it would hurt this much to say goodbye. In the short time I have spent here, I have fallen in love with Boston, with America and with the culture. I have made some really good friends and learned some really hard lessons about myself.
I remember first landing here, all by myself on a warm August day. The worst part is that I started off this series telling you how I thought that warm day was indeed very cool for me. But after living through my first snow and windy sub-zero-degree Celsius nights, the memory of August feels like a sauna. Friends, I do not think I will survive the heat and humidity waiting for me at home at this point.
As the day of my flight home looms closer, I sit here writing this staring at the Citgo sign, thinking how much I am going to miss everything about Boston. I am going to miss your ridiculously slow, noisy Green Line. I am going to miss the leafless trees. I am going to miss that unique Boston energy.
More importantly, I am going to miss my experiences and the people I have met. To my American friends, you are the loudest, liveliest bunch of hooligans I have ever met. You are kind when I am ignorant, and are modest and honest when I point out your flaws. You put me in my place when I need it, and you let me put you in yours when you need it. You have taught me humility and how to throw my inhibitions out the window. I will never be able to show my gratitude for these lessons. Thank you for showing me America through your eyes. I have enjoyed every second of listening to your point of views and for being accepted despite the fact that I am so far from what you’re used to. You embody the best of this country.
I am also going to miss Boston University as an institution. My professors are a good mix of erratic, way-too-smart and bloody opinionated; I have enjoyed my conversations with them. In Singapore, a lot of my American professors are more casual with us and tend to talk to us about things other than strictly school work. But as an Asian culture, we like to keep our distance from people who are considered “above” us. It took me a while to get used to this overwhelming culture where professors actually want to talk to each individual student and are invested in their personal development. At first it felt weird to discuss my personal career goals with my professors, but I have come to appreciate their counsel and their gentle assurances that I will be OK. It is scary, after all, that in a short few years, I too will join the adult world of employment (hopefully).
As a whole, I will miss America. I have been to San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Cape Cod, Vermont, New York City and Boston. Though this list is by far not representative of the entire country, I feel like I have a taste of it. You are a nation full of polar opposites; it’s one of the things that makes America what it is. I definitely appreciate how warm and friendly Americans are. Even in New York, I found kindness and humility. I will not miss being catcalled and being treated like a piece of meat, but coming from a more conservative society, I will definitely miss how forward men in America are.
What a weird thing to throw in here, I know, but it’s one of those things that sets this Western world apart from my Asian one. It’s flattering to have someone come up to you and tell you you’re beautiful when you were just standing there trying to get yourself some coffee. Be respectful and polite, but keep doing what you do, chaps.
I will also miss how opinionated Americans are. I have met so many interesting characters. All of you have differing points of view and aren’t afraid to voice it. From the lady at the diner in Vermont educating me about the “crazy rednecks,” as she put it, to the guy I met at the Metropolitan Museum of Art who shared with me what he thought were the best and worst things about New York City. It is the random strangers I have met along the way that added color to the painting of America I have been working on in my mind since I got here. Even though they will probably never see this, my gratitude is theirs.
I’d like to end my journey here both with The Daily Free Press and BU with this quote from Disney’s “Fox and the Hound.” “Goodbye may seem forever. Farewell is like the end, but in my heart’s the memory and there you will always be.”
This experience has been one of those once-in-a-lifetime, I-will-probably-still-talk-about-this-when-I-am-90 type of things. I know when I leave Boston I will leave a piece of me behind that I will never get back. A small part of me will always wish to come back relive these wonderful few months. But it is time for me to return home. I will always have my memories though, and Boston will soon become just another chapter in the book that is my life. It will always be one of those chapters I will look back on often and wistfully. But with this, it is time for me to bid my farewell.
With all my love, Revathi out (*drops mic*).
