The_Move

It was really happening; we were moving. I had lived in Salt Lake City, Utah ever since I was five years old, and now I was leaving it. We were moving to Cairo, Egypt. My parents had talked about it for the past few years. Every year they said, “We’re moving this time;” it never happened. But now it was settled, we were leaving in the beginning of May. When I thought of Egypt, I thought of pyramids, pharaohs, camels, and tents. It wasn’t somewhere I would ever think to live in; maybe I’d go there for a vacation, but live there… I don’t think so. Regardless, we were moving there, so I figured I’d have to learn to accept it. I had to accept that I was soon leaving the place I had called home; I was leaving the comfort of being surrounded by friends and family to an unfamiliar place in which I knew no soul. Not only would I not know a soul, but I would also not be able to communicate with anyone. They would speak Arabic, which I did not understand one bit. I was a junior in high school, so it was a little upsetting to know that I wouldn’t be able to graduate with my friends whom I’d grown up with and known most of my life. When I told my friends that I was leaving, they simply didn’t believe me. They just brushed it off as a false alarm. Since it didn’t come to pass the last three times I had given them the “oh- my- god -I’m- moving- to- Cairo” alarm, they didn’t think this time would be any different. Of course, this year was different. This time, it was real. The reality of it gave off a stench that was hard to ignore. I mean, who were they kidding' More importantly, why was I kidding myself' We all saw the emptiness of what was our home; we saw that every last piece of furniture was gone. A lot of it was sold; the rest was given away to friends and relatives alike. It was all gone to the last hanging on the wall, to the last bowl in the kitchen cabinet. There was no evidence of the home my parents had filled with expensive furniture and décor, no evidence of the home my mom had carefully and impeccably decorated to fit her taste and personality. I walked from room to room all throughout the house; I stared at the chilling emptiness and it unflinchingly stared back. Before we knew it, the day we were going to leave had arrived. Friends and family had gathered at the house, helping us with last minute preparations. As we were leaving, we took one last look at the house. It looked lonely without the two family cars parked in the driveway; the big tree seemed bare without its tire swing. Our uncle was going to drive us to the airport. But in the end, we split up amongst the friends and relatives who had come to escort us to the airport and say their last goodbyes. We arrived at the airport a little before noon. When we got there, we were welcomed by the throng of people who had gotten there before us. We went through the whole crowd of loved ones, hugging, kissing, and saying our last farewells. There were a lot of tears; even I, who was not one to put on the waterworks, found myself crying. It was staggering to see so many different people expressing emotion because; they didn’t know when they would see us again. We left their warm embrace and walked through the metal detectors, trying to keep straight faces, and trying to not look back. We finally got on the airplane; it was the first time I’d gotten on an airplane since I was four years old. I was afraid of heights, so the idea of flying was anything but appealing to me; however, I was curious to see what it felt like to fly. My family members were scattered around, so we didn’t get to sit as a family. But, strangely, it was arranged just so that we ended up being paired. Throughout the whole airplane ride, memories of my friends and old home kept popping into my mind; it made me feel so emotional. I also thought about how Egypt would be like. I didn’t know what to expect once I got there. I felt the airplane start to roll upon the ground; it had finally landed. I remember the date exactly. It was May 10th of 2005, a day I will never forget. When we arrived in Egypt, it was early morning. A friend of my father’s came to pick us up and take us to our new home. I found my assumptions of the country were way off. Cairo was a city full of life, with tall towering buildings and car congestion that made for bad traffic. It had great night life and wonderful attractions; you could never get bored there. Besides, it’s probably the only place you could see a Ferrari and donkey cart share a road. I found wonderful people who were fun to be around. Of course, I had to learn a new language, but it was a great part of the experience. Egypt was home for four wonderful years. It was a great chapter in my life, and I wouldn’t change a thing. This experience taught me that change is not such a bad thing after all; people should embrace change and try to make the best of it, especially, when it’s inevitable. Who knows' It could turn out to be the best thing that happened to you .