Your background including successes or struggles, Educational

Name
Instructor
Course
Date
My Origins: The Past
I came to this country when I was 15 years old and the war had hit Albania, my home country really hard. On arrival I could not speak English and I therefore had a hard time because of the communication barrier between myself and the locals. At the time I could speak three languages; Albanian, Spanish and Italian, but most of the people I interacted with spoke English. We also had troubles settling down because my guardians had to struggle to secure jobs and locate future housing.
The period that followed was extremely difficult as I tried to learn English, settle down and adapt to the new way of life. There was also the culture shock in the new environment because of the immense difference in the way of life between the U.S. and Albania. It even took me some time to even get used to the food that was available here. In addition, there were major changes in the way the people here socialize and it took me some time to learn how to relate with my peers and also the older people.
At the time I was much younger and I found it rather difficult to adapt to the new way of life. I had been parted from my parents and most of my family members either through death or by physical separation. Many people, friends and family had been killed back in Albania while I and other children watched and even after running away, I never got away from the trauma. However, the chance to start life over again was like a second chance in li…