My 19

I turned 20 today herewith I can't call myself a "teen" anymore and my age number would be -ty from now on. Which means I am considered an adult now. Honestly, I am kind of sad thinking of how my childhood is over. Playgrounds and making sand castles is an age that's pretty much over (Well not really, but kind of). However, before thinking about revolutions for my 20, I’d like to look back on my 19 to see how my 19 has passed and what I have done.

My 19 has been quite a year. Still, it was a year of learning and experiencing. To be honest, 19 was one of the most special years that I have in my whole life.

First and most importantly, with all the wishes and prompts I received on this day last year (I mean on my 19th birthday), I finally officially started my studying abroad journey in the beautiful country of Russia since 2019. Being a student of a top-tier university is kind of daunting sometimes, but it somehow pushes me forward and always keeps me in line whenever I'm stressed, tired and want to give up. And for the first time in my life, I really feel like there's nothing I can't learn, which in turn builds so much confidence in skills and gives me the massive momentum to keep trying my best. Besides, studying abroad allows me to meet friends from all walks of life who may see things from another perspectives of mine, since then it helps me think objectively about myself and my home country, tolerate differences, recognize and appreciate diversity. I know that college time is a steep learning curve in gaining independence. But for me, it takes that a whole step further, really challenging me to develop as individual. I obviously have to cope on my own and have to be able to look after myself and sort out my own affairs as well. However, this journey also brought me many “firsts”, including difficulties and failures. I saw snow falling in the freezing winter, yellow maple leaves in the fantastic autumn, Red Square, Moscow City and a lot of things for the first time in my life. I also experienced my first Tet holiday (the Lunar New Year in Vietnam) away from home, without parents and the “Tet” vibe which I always took for granted for more than 18 years. But with every challenge, I felt empowered when I was able to overcome it. A feeling of “Wow, I am all grown up now!” and “Am I finally doing this adult-ing thing?!”. On this special day, I wish myself to continue to be strong and tenacious to conquer the upcoming arduous journey.

Next, finally at this age I decided to volunteer abroad in KL, Malaysia, a beautiful country in Asia (quite close to Vietnam) but I have never been before. This 20-day program gave me a golden opportunity to reach out to special children in Malaysia, whom I initially thought would be really difficult to talk to, but end up with giving me countless precious memories and difficulties in saying goodbye in the farewell party. This opened my eyes to global inequalities, give me a greater appreciation for everything I have. In addition, I had the chance to meet some friends with "strange" stories that I thought could only be read in books. Thanks to MOVE Malaysia (Erica Liew, Sivasangari Ramasamy) for giving me this wonderful opportunity, which turned me from a tourist to a Malay-ish person and proffered me not only personal growth, but also adventure.

One more “cool” thing that I have done this year, worth mentioning is to get an internship as a college freshman. It is also the first time in my life that I “worked” in a company. At first, I gave me endless difficulties which forced me quickly find me feet in this new and strange environment. Thanks to my mentor, Mr Nhu Anh, who constantly stands by my side and gives me massive support and motivates me to learn hard and work hard to achieve more. I saw my tech skills improving gradually - that is exactly what I expected about that internship. For the next two months of this internship, I wish I would be able to fulfill my mentor’s expectation and to complete my internship as best as I can.

Finally,it would be an oversight to miss out G-College Singapore, the organization that I have worked with for 2 years and a half. G-College, always gives me not only experience, skills but also friendship. Some of the colleagues have become my close(est) friends that ceaselessly support me no matter what. And yeh, for the first time AGAIN, I had opportunities to share my stories as a speaker of Workshop “Career Anchor” in Hanoi Vietnam and Livestream “Scholarship Hunting” of GCS. I don’t know since when I was emotionally attached to G-College that much that it is very hard for me to say “Goodbye”. I would like to thank c Linh, the founder of G-College for believing and helping me over the past time. I do not promise in advance how long I will stay with G-College but I will try my best when I can.

Overall, my 19 in review:

1. Started studying abroad in Russia

2. Travelled to 3 countries (Russia, China, Malaysia)

3. Got my first volunteer abroad program

4. Got my first tech internship

5. Became a speaker for the first time

That is my 19. It was a year of many first times in my life that helped me grow as a person. I am fully grateful for all those nice things that came to me this age. Closing my 19 here, open a new chapter of life, my 20s. Above all, I wish myself peace, smiles, and excellent mood. Let all the bad things go aside, may I overcome the hardships of life with ease, let every day of this new year of life be filled with joy and happiness. Let there be good hope and infinite love. Happy birthday to me.

*This note is long enough so I’ll save revolutions for my 20s somewhere else (maybe privately).

25/05/2020

Hanoi, Vietnam

Long