Zhanzhigit Aray
Almaty
My life is my story
Life is so interesting, sometimes complicated, incomprehensible, and absolutely unexplored for every person. It is one thing to learn and take examples from others, and quite another to live your own life. After all, everyone's life is their own and very important to each of us. Our life is shorter than we think, isn't it? It is fleeting, so much so that sometimes you don't realize how everything has changed. And yet, life is a series of events, both good and bad, happy and unfair moments. But each of them teaches us to be grateful, strong, and resilient. Thanks to such moments, a person grows, gains wisdom, and most importantly, experience. It is important to say that for a person—even if not for everyone, then for me—a large part of the life lessons I received came from good events. The emotions and sensations they gifted me are never forgotten and remain a great life experience. Since my first trip abroad, travel has become one of the best memories for me.
I am a girl from a very ordinary family, where my mother worked as a teacher and my father as a driver. I lived an average life, if you think about it, but thanks to the love and care of my parents and sisters, I felt we were very rich. But I turned thirteen, and my life turned upside down. Losing the pillar of the family and the person I loved most was not one of the easy moments of my life. My inner little girl faded, thinking about my mother who was left alone at home while her daughter studied at a boarding school. I became too withdrawn, shy, completely different from who I was before. And then, at the end of 2019, finding out that my uncle and his family were flying to Istanbul, my mother gathered her money and sent me with them. I was very pleased; I was so looking forward to this trip, which lived up to my expectations one hundred percent. A city that included both culture and modernity, kind and sincere people, made me feel a new, yet unexplored feeling. This trip changed my life. Yes, just one trip that influenced my life so much that my soul now strived to know what lies ahead. I knew there was still more I had to see.
After all, in the last decade, there have been a myriad of opportunities for students and schoolchildren to gain experience abroad. The number of summer camps that send students to different countries to learn languages and get acquainted with new cultures has started to grow. But there are requirements here, such as expenses, which are fully paid by the student and their parents. Unfortunately, not all parents can afford such tours and camps. But in such cases, there are many programs that help with financial issues. Even if you couldn't go abroad upon finishing school, there are many opportunities to study abroad for a certain time through programs of various universities, states, or well-known programs (Erasmus+, Erasmus Mundus, Mevlana), which in turn are famous for their generous sponsorship conditions. If you look, a multitude of opportunities open up for students. And it is not for nothing that they say, "The 21st century is the century of opportunities, unlimited choice, and the realization of potential."
Having finished 11th grade, I desperately wanted to go abroad, but in my heart, I couldn't leave my mother alone, so I gave up the opportunity to fly to Turkey and stayed in Almaty. At the university, I wanted to study languages, as I linked my future to them. I spent the entire first year of university studying at home, in front of a laptop. I started to get tired of this, and I began looking for opportunities to step out of my comfort zone. That same day, as if Instagram heard me, the first ad that popped up was about Work and Travel. At that moment, I remembered a moment from my childhood when my sister came home with gifts given to her by a friend who had recently returned from the USA. I had completely forgotten about it, as there is a big age gap between my sister and me, and this story was about 8-9 years ago. But the moment I saw the ad, I remembered everything about this program and realized that this was an opportunity that found me itself. It was May 2021, and I started looking for all possible information about the program. Since my mother always supported me in situations concerning studies and going abroad, I didn't have the slightest doubt that she would approve of my decision here too. And when I found out everything, understood how things worked, I decided to tell my mother. It was mid-September when I heard the words, "Do you really need this?..". Yes, it was unexpected to hear these words from the closest person. Of course, I tried to prove to her that "Yes, I need this," but in the end, I couldn't get approval. With that, the dream of gaining experience in America closed before my nose. The continuation of this story came in October 2022, when I learned from my classmate that he was going to the USA this summer through this program. The forgotten dream reminded me of itself. Honestly, I grew more in this year than in others, and the realization of this helped me take everything into my own hands. After the refusal I received, it was difficult to talk to my mother about this topic again. But I dared. This time I received "Nothing" in response. But this time it won't stop me. And I will go to the very end. And I know that all my efforts and hopes will be justified and I will spend my best summer of 2023 in America.
Working abroad is an invaluable experience for young people. Flying across the ocean and living in a foreign country, learning new things, and having the opportunity to work is like hatching from a shell for teenagers. In the future, this will be an excellent addition to a university graduate's resume. As I said, I linked my future to my hobby—learning a foreign language. The English language is now one of the foundations of everything in the world. But as strange as it may sound, my acquaintance with the English language happened 13 years ago. And I still have a barrier when speaking. Also, in order to increase my knowledge and broaden my horizons, I want to apply for a master's degree in one of the European countries this year. And even here, certificates of language proficiency are required. The English language is very important for my future, as both areas in which I want to develop and work have a direct connection with the English language. Therefore, learning the language is one of the main reasons for my aspiration to the USA, to finally understand and speak this language.
This program develops every year and gives tens of thousands of students from all over the world the opportunity to learn English, find friends from all over the world, grow up, learn to earn money through honest labor, discover new and unexplored places, and much more that I want to learn. This is a great opportunity for students to prove themselves and let their new foreign friends know about our country and our traditions.
As I wrote, I learned about this program about 10 years ago, and every year it is rapidly developing in our country and will continue to develop, helping students grow, I believe. Of course, these are not my simple imaginary guesses; these are the numbers I saw in documents. And I hope with all my heart that this year I will also get into this list, which is cherished for me—the list of those who have visited the United States through the Work and Travel 2023 program. I believe this year of mine will be interesting, informative, and wonderful, and the trip to America will be one of those moments for me!
