Emmanuel Mushosho's Blog

It’s a tricky question; studying abroad has come with its challenges, and pointing out one is difficult. But I would say escaping my comfort zone. Coming to America meant leaving a lot of what I was familiar with and stepping into the unknown. Having to leave home, friends and family, not knowing the next time I’ll see them again.

It’s the small things like:

• Having your mum to go to the doctor with, or when you’re stuck, giving your dad a call, and he’ll be there – to now you’re on your own most of the time
• Going to school and everyone is a familiar face to now moving around campus seeing thousands of new ones
• Having your siblings to joke around with at the dinner table to now eating in dining halls full of strangers

It’s a curve, but with it comes the realisation that to enjoy your experience, you must step out of your comfort zone. To have the courage to speak to random people, join clubs and put yourself in places even if you think you’re unqualified. There is a lot that you can do to make the most of your time at university, but it comes on the other side of fear.

I’ve improved and will continue to work on it, and it reminds me of a piece of writing I did which covers this topic:

THROUGH THE WINDOW

Looking out of my window, all I see are the leaves elegantly dancing in the wind, and apart from that, I see darkness. The night can be scary; you don’t know what is lurking in the shadows, and this breeds fear. A fear of the unknown. The word fear taunts me. When I look at my life, fear has been a roadblock. It has held me back from doing things and talking to the people I’ve wanted. Countless times I have told myself to take the leap, but my words seem to echo back, quieter each time, until it’s as if they were never said. I have realized that good can come from overcoming your fears. So, I challenge myself to confront this thing called fear daily, so that when I look back, I see no traces of it.

“If you heed your fears, you’ll die never knowing what a great person you might have been” ~ Dr. Robert Schuller

(He wanted a shoutout, so I’ll give it to him; it was Kevin January who made the request. )