James Oeth

From China to AmericaThe transition from China to America can be really tough for some people,

but Liyang has handled it wonderfully. His decision to move to America was not

made by him, but since he has been here, he has whole-heartedly embraced it—

learning the language and embracing the culture of the people here. His father

made the decision for Liyang to travel to America for high school because he

thought that Liyang would receive a better education here and would then be able to

prosper as an adult.

Liyand talks about the food here and says he likes it much better than the

food that they have in China like the cheese steaks at lunch. He also likes how much

free time he has now that he is in America compared to how much time he had in

China. He says, “I have much more time to study in America; I like that.” He also

talks about how much time he has to practice basketball and how the sports in

America are much more competitive.

The one thing that is different from China is the language barrier that he

faced when he came to America. Kids in America constantly told him that words

meant different things than what they actually meant. Overcoming the teasing was

difficult, but with the help of teachers and friends and he was able to overcome the

language adversity.

Liyang has missed his family and friends from China, which has made him

travel back to China during all of the major breaks during the year. He travels back

to China to reconcile with his family during the Christmas break and he was

surprised to learn that he had forgotten a little bit of Chinese whilst he was here in

the United States. When he was here, he told us stories about the ways that Chinese

people celebrate the holidays and how he was so excited to share the American

culture with his family in China.

The Internet is much different in China and America. In China there are no

websites like Facebook and Twitter because the Chinese government has a very

effective firewall that blocks off those kinds of social networking sites. Liyang

enjoys the freedom of the Internet in America but does not like how he cannot be

friends with his old friends from China on Facebook.

All in all, Liyang has prospered in America and does not regret his decision to

come. After surpassing the language barrier, Liyang has really enjoyed the freedom

that America has offered him in regards to practicing sports and keeping up with his

school work.

photo by Liyang Li