ESL Voices 2022 by Cuyahoga Community College

ESL

VOICES 2022

Writings, Poems and Essays by Students of English as a Second Language

CUYAHOGA COMMUNITY COLLEGE

ESL Voices 2022

Writings, Poems and Essays by Students of English as a Second Language

CUYAHOGA COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Editor: Becca Aronhalt Yokum, West Lisa Friel, Westshor Nick Prokup, West

Judging Committee: Lisa Friel, Westshore Jennie Kaffen, Metro Jason Mullin, East David Napuk, West

Art Direction: Seong-Ae Mun, West

Cover Art: Kristina Canda, student, West

Design and Layout: Kristina Canda, student, West

Contributing Faculty: Becca Aronhalt Yokum, West Danielle Belisle, Westshore Sue Bartch, West Patricia Coyne, West Brigitte Deutsch, West Lisa Friel, Westshore Carole Hausrod-Hodkey, Metro Roberta Hendrick, Metro Jennie Kaffen, Metro David Napuk, West Nick Prokup, West

Background and Mission In 1991, Mara Hegedeos, Assistant Professor of English/English as a Second Language, collected ESL student essays college-wide and put them under one cover. Thus, ESL Voices was born. Since that time, the mantle has been taken up by faculty from the different campuses, with heroic efforts to secure funding in the earlier years. We appreciate the efforts of all those editorial teams, and we especially appreciate the current administration’s support – both moral and financial – of the publication of this edition of ESL Voices. ESL Voices showcases the writing of our international, immigrant, and citizen English-language students and recognizes two important facts: the ability to write well is hard work, and the ability to write well in a second language is twice that. Through ESL Voices, Cuyahoga Community College acknowledges the achievements of its ESL students, celebrates their diversity, and motivates continued writing improvement.

Acknowledgements Thanks to the following people whose support and encouragement helped make this year’s ESL Voices a reality: Radiah Blanton, Associate Dean, Liberal Arts, Western Campus; Dwayne Keeney, Associate Dean, Liberal Arts, Eastern Campus; Claire McMahon, Associate Dean, Liberal Arts & Business, Westshore Campus; and Janet Spitzig, Interim Associate Dean, Liberal Arts, Metro Campus. We would also like to give a special thanks to Seong-Ae Mun for her help and guidance in this cross-curriculum collaboration between ESL and graphic arts, and to Kirstina Canda, a Visual Communication and Graphic Design student, for her creative cover art and layout design for this edition of ESL Voices.

Prize Winners First Place: Roxana Negrut An Unforgettable Experience, My Daughter’s First Flight Second Place: Elone Culiq Aleppo Third Place: Banan Shikh Learning Morals and Character Development

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Where I Was from and Where I Am Going..21 Dina Shagayo

Travel.....................45

Where I am From and Where I am Going.....22 Valentyna Makurina

The Best Place for Vacation...............................45 Yibing Xu

About Covid 19....................................................22 Mimoza Vodinaj

Traveling All America..........................................45 Jianmin Zhang

My Eyes................................................................. 23 Irankunda Ndaruzaniye

The Trip That Changed My Life.........................46 Maryclair Rida

Change Is the Most Interesting Thing in Life...23 Uliana Stanishchuk

What Is Your Favorite Place?............................46 Elena Simona Winze

Narrative Essay....................................................25 Iulia Coclenci

Relationships.............48

Moving to the United States as a Teenager...27 Kathia Vizcarrondo

My Best Friend......................................................48 Nataly Panta

When I Moved to the United States.................29 Dolores Cruz Ramirez

My Little Cousin....................................................48 Fabjola Smajlaj

Challenges................14

Academic Explorations..30

Homeless words....................................................49 Mohammad Wasim Safi

Aleppo................................................................... 14 Elona Culiq, Second Place Prizewinner

Good Teachers vs. Bad Teachers......................30 Busra Duzdag

Classmates in the Past.........................................49 Milian Prifti

The Story of My Move........................................15 Inna Blyzniuk

My Opinion about the Comparison between U.S. and Mexico...........................................................30 Daniel Emiliano Barrera Miranda

My Mom Maria....................................................50 Wedmara S Da Silva-Popke

Contents Origins....................1 My Story................................................................ 1 Ngunza Pum My Hometown.......................................................2 Mwavita Rajabu My Dream Vacation............................................2 Dora Hamilton My Long Awaited Trip to My Parental Home......................................................3 Anastasiya Akulich My Favorite Place................................................4 Mariia Samsak My Past Shaped My Identity.............................6 Sona Qaderi

An Unidentified Flying Object...........................11 Virginie Gilles An Unforgettable Experience, My Daughter’s First Flight.............................................................. 12 Roxana Negrut, First Place Prizewinner

My Son’s Birthday................................................15 Immaculee Mukanyandwi My Story................................................................ 16 Kiljung-Jang

Memorable Moments....8

My Story................................................................ 16 Tetiana Lupashtian

War in Ukraine.....................................................8 Yuliia Nagirnyak

My Family Story...................................................17 Iryna Shtynda

Memorable Day in My Life................................9 Walaa Ahmed

A Terrible and Wonderful Year........................17 Altina Ago

The Best Day I Have Ever Had..........................10 Fjorda Hysenaj

My Story................................................................ 18 Reda Ayman Ahmad T Ali

The Day I Became a U.S. Citizen......................10 Lesya Bulchak An Unforgettable Experience............................11 Solomiia Boiechko

ESL Voices

My Story................................................................ 19 Tetiana Dubiv My Bad Years.......................................................19 Mallak Abuazzab

Life with the Children vs Life without the Children........................................................... 31 Sona Qaderi Learning English....................................................33 Julita Nakaro The Journey to Learning English........................34 Marzan Hossain How I Learned English.........................................36 Elysee Kwitace Camara Learning Morals and Character Development...38 Banan Shikh, Third Place Prizewinner Two Types of Learning........................................41 Hanna Yendrys Motherhood between Dream and Reality......43 Banan Shikh

Young Love............................................................ 51 Mohammad Wasim Safi What Made Me Happy.....................................51 Favour Eze those who live alone............................................53 Elona Culiq

Looking Forward........55 The Future for Myself, My Family, and the World......................................................55 Altina Ago My Story................................................................ 56 Amith Gurung Who I Am Today..................................................56 Andreia Georgescu

Origins My Story

Ngunza Pum Myanmar, Level 1

My story had too many challenges in my life. I decided to overcome those challenges. I am from Hakha Chin State in Myanmar. I was born in 02/20/1986. My hometown was not developed. It’s lack of education and technical. Economy was also bad. My hometown was not good socially, religiously, politically. I attended High School in Hakha, but I did not know nothing. There was different rich and poor among us. That was why I left for Malaysia in 2006. I applied for resettlement program a refugee at the United Nations High Commissioner for refugees (UNHCR). I waited for two years and a half. I worked extremely hard to survive there. I need to support my family in back there. Eventually, I came to the Unite State in 2009.Thanks God! And I deep breath my life started again. I am facing Language, Cars, Job problems again. I worked Cell phone Company in six years. I still did not have enough to support my family. I wanted to learn English but did not have time to go to school. It did not work. It was a very hard time. I moved to Cleveland in 2015. I started a sushi business. I worked seven days a week. My effort bears fruits. After three years I decided to learn English. Finally, business was successful. I overcame too many obstacles. I continued to learn English and here I am today. Yay!

Origins

My Hometown

Mwavita Rajabu Tanzania, Level 1

Hi everyone, my name is Mwavita Rajabu. Today I’m going to present my hometown, where I was born. The name of my hometown is D1, Tanzania. My hometown is famous for several amazing things. First, the people in my hometown are very friendly and they help each other. It’s a busy town. What I like most about my hometown is that you can enjoy several sports activities here, such as playing soccer, horo, and kombolela. There are many grocery stores in my hometown. There’s also schools and a small clinic. Second, there isn’t a bus stop like other places. But there’s a motorcycle stop and a bike stop. People in my hometown celebrate when a new baby is born by riding motorcycles, dancing, singing and eating different kinds of foods. Another amazing feature is the big playing field. Every weekend we will watch every kind of sport in that field. Fourth, when my hometown is about to get in the holiday season like on Christmas Day two families can share money to buy one big cow just for Christmas and on happy new year parents buy their children new clothes. As you can see, my hometown is a beautiful place. If you ask me, where can I go for my winter, spring or summer vacation? I will tell you to go to my hometown for your vacation.

My Dream Vacation

Dora Hamilton United States, Level 1

In my opinion, my dream vacation should be in Dominican Republic. First, there are a lot of places that I want to visit in my country because I never have been there. For example I want to visit Casa de Campo, Punta Cana, and Samana. Second, these places have a lot of attractions to see. For example, in Samana in the summer you can see the whales. Finally, in Punta Cana you can go to beautiful beaches, and interesting places. For example I want to enjoy Bavaro Beach, and I also want to see Altos de Chavon. In conclusion, I think Dominican Republic is the best place for my dream vacation.

ESL Voices

My Long Awaited Trip to My Parental Home

Anastasiya Akulich Belarus, Level 3

“For there we loved, and where we love is home, Home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts, Though o’er us shine the jasper-lighted dome:-The chain may lengthen, but it never parts!” Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., Homesick in Heaven What makes us happy? Emotions, meetings with loved ones, events, long-awaited purchases and many other things. I want to tell you about an event that left very strong emotions, about my long-awaited trip to my parental home. The first trip there, three years after moving to another country. Yes, maybe three years on the one hand and not such a long period, but for me this is a time of reassessment of my values, learning a lot of new things, reincarnating me. I was really looking forward to meeting my family, friends, places of memories and most importantly, my parents and home. How would the experience be? The first thing I want to remember over and over again is the meeting with my parents. These feelings cannot be conveyed in words when tears of happiness flow like a river and you can embrace them ... for real. For the first couple of days, I couldn’t believe that there was no phone screen between us; I hugged them so often. Then there were rushed meetings with brothers and their wives, nephew, cousins, aunts and uncles and of course my grandmother; I was so afraid not to have time to meet her. My friends, I thought we had grown apart, because in the crazy rhythm of our lives there is not always time to even write a message, but no, all the same friendly feelings were there. How glad I was to see them all, I bathed in their love, this is an endless feeling of happiness that I have all of them. Before the trip, I marked several places that I would definitely visit, for example, the main pedestrian street of our beautiful city. I slowly walked along the cobblestones, examining the ancient buildings, wondering how many beautifully dressed people were rushing somewhere on their business. The embankment of the lake, with an incredible sunset, how many tears of experience were shed there. A camp site on the shore of the lake with dances from dusk to dawn in Origins

the open air. My favorite cafe, where a lot of liters of coffee were drunk and pounds of cakes were eaten with my girlfriends. How nice it was to visit these places, to experience forgotten emotions. My parental home is an amazing place. I often see it in my dreams. A house on the shore of a lake, which is surrounded by greenery and flowers. I left the house every morning and walked around; I was charged with the energy of nature. There is an apple orchard, a cherry orchard, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries. I rode on a swing watching the lake sparkle. At such moments I wanted to be alone in order to completely immerse myself in this atmosphere, the atmosphere of absolute relaxation. My room is in the house, it probably will always remain mine. Nothing has changed in it since I left to study, wow, for almost 20 years. Photos, someone’s gifts, toys are all worth it, I wanted to touch everything. A room with a fireplace, with a real living fire, we spent all family holidays there. A huge mirror in the hallway, which I looked into every time before going out. Such ordinary and at the same time special things. My parents’ home is like a living being that communicated with me in its own language. I was looking forward to this trip, I was afraid that my relatives would not be as close as before. My parental home would seem foreign to me. Special places with my memories would not evoke emotions. I was incredibly happy, to feel, understand, find out that all this remained with me, that the connection was so strong despite the distance and time. And even though my home is in America now, a part of my heart remained there. I know that they are always waiting for me there, and there I can recharge my batteries to reach new heights.

My Favorite Place

Mariia Samsak Ukraine, Level 3

“I want to go back in time. Not to change anything, but to feel something again” (Maverick). Time flies very fast and it never stops. I would turn the clock back to the most favorite time in my life, to a small village in the middle of nowhere that no one would call their favorite place. It’s my favorite place where I spent wonderful moments with amazing memories, which I think about and smile.

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My grandparents lived in that village, and I used to visit them there every summer for three long, as I thought those days, months. We spent summers together. Looking back, all my days there were very busy, helping with all kinds of work that could be on a farm. My grandfather took care of the cattle and did all the hard work on the farm; that’s how I learned how to graze cows and milk a cow, how to hold the log correctly and work skillfully with a saw. My grandmother, as always, cooked a lot, baked the most delicious buns and cherry pies, telling me many stories about the war and their childhood. I learned everything from them: to plant and take care of the garden, to cook, to clean carefully, especially to wash the corners on the floor. Only now, I realized how valuable those things they taught me were, those stories they told me, and that golden time I experienced. Thanks to that, I became the person who I am now. I still remember that smell and taste of fresh baked bread, dancing in a puddle on a rainy day, tiredness and hurting my body from sunburns and hard work, and my unbelievably happy face. In the end of the day my friends and I full of energy, singing and laughing loudly, went to the night club where I could break down those high heels on the old wood dancing floor. That was an amazing time playing together with no gadgets, visiting each others with no schedules; we liked each others not for clothes we were wearing, but for sincere and kind hearts. That was truly and honest friendship; we shared our happiest moments while we were running in neighbors’ garden trying to steal a pear or an apple from their trees. I wish I understood at that time what made that place so special and how appreciated each minute was, helping grandparents or playing with friends. Sadly, I can’t go back in time, can’t live just one more of the same moments. My favorite place has changed without the people I loved the most. Many unspoken words are left. However, memories of my favorite place make me smile and cry at the same time; they remind and keep me dreaming about how amazing childhood I had. Say to your family and friends those “I love you’s” more often, despite how boring it would sound. Appreciate each moment in your life because it never lasts forever! Works Cited: Mr. Maverick. I Wish I Could Turn Back Time Quotes to Make You Feel Better. Craze MKH. ttps://craze.myknowledgehunt.com/2021/02/i-wish-i-could-turn-back-time-quotes.html

Origins

My Past Shaped My Identity

Sona Qaderi Afghanistan, Level 3

My identity and my personality are the combination of several aspects from my past, my present and my future. The journey of my life in the past, the experiences that I have from the past made the person who I am right now and the way that I am living now. All the efforts and endeavors that I had are the reasons to fulfill my aims for a better future. My whole life and the person who I am right now depend on the following reasons: The challenges and troubles that I endured in the past, the people who had effective roles in my life and the society that I lived in. There are many challenges in every human being’s life and these challenges change the life of people in different ways and for me those challenges and problems were like lessons. I had many troubles in my life such as: economical problems, social problems, environmental problems, educational problems and much more. When I was a child, my father was working in a far place from our house in order to make some money and provide for us food, clothes, a house for living and our education expenses. He was coming every two months for a week to visit us. I was living with my mother and my three sisters in a village, and we were not able to go to some institutes beside our school classes because our environment was not safe for a girl. We had a traditional society and most of the people were harassing the girls for different reasons. But the good thing is that I have learned lots of good lessons from them and they made me stronger and without them I think my life somehow would become meaningless because may now I would have nothing to compare with the good times.

for women was the most difficult experience in my life. Living in Afghanistan is one of the big reasons of who I am. As a citizen living in my country was like an unknown life, any time that we went out our house we were not sure that we were able to comeback or not, many people lost their lives on the way of school and on the way of their job in bomb blasts. We had bomb blasts in our schools, in university, in the hospital, inside the mosques, in shopping malls, on the streets and almost in everywhere. I lived my whole childhood and my teenage period in fear of war, losing my life and losing my loved ones. That society taught me many things and had both bad and good effects on my life. It caused me to stay back and drop behind in many aspects in my life. I couldn’t continue my education in my country and go to university. At the end anything that I have in my life material, spiritual, good and bad, I am debtor to my past, the people who had important roles in my life and where that I grow up. I am happy that they shaped me in a good way and now I know the value of everything that I have in my life and didn’t have in the past. There is a famous quote that says” Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness” Eckhart Tolle. I hope that one day I will be the person that I always wish to be.

Family and the people who live around us have a comprehensive role and direct influence on our attitude. My mother was a teacher, and my father was a soldier, they are the most influential people in my life, and they had the basic and fundamental role in my life. I always tried to have positive, wise and hard-working people around myself and that is why now I am optimistic and responsible person. At the end I became a strong, loyal and regular person as my father, and a creative, dedicated, passionate and caring person as my mother. As a woman living and growing up in a third world country, in a country that has been in war for many decades and has no rights 6

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Origins

Memorable Day in My Life

Memorable Moments War in Ukraine

Yuliia Nagirnyak Ukraine, Level 1

I’ve had many bad days in my life, but one of the worst days was when Russia attacked Ukraine. I learned about that in the evening, when I came home from college. I wanted to study, but I opened Facebook and was shocked. No one was ready for that. I couldn’t sleep, so I felt very bad in the morning. First, Russia blew up airports and military objects, eve in small cities. After that, they blew up people’s houses, hospitals, and children’s kindergartens. They shot volunteers, medical workers, and peaceful people. A lot of cities were destroyed. People can’t leave their destroyed houses, because Russia soldiers shout them on the way to safe places. Many children don’t have parents, because their parents were killed by Russia soldiers. Also, many people died due to lack of medical care. I have a mother in Ukraine, and I’m worrying about her. My mother took people to my grandparents’ house. They come to her from Kharkiw, and they travelled for about four days, because their road was dangerous. I read Ukrainian news in the morning, and there were cases when Russia tanks crushed car with people and children inside. Finally, Putin incites Belarus to fight us. It’s awful, and I don’t have any words. In my opinion, and opinion all Ukrainian people, Putin is a terrible person. We hope as soon as possible, the war is over.

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Walaa Ahmed Egypt, Level 2

A memorable day was the day I graduated from high school in June, 2005. It was the day the test result would appear. In the morning, it was 7:00 a.m. I was very upset, worried and more nervous because my whole life and my career future will depend on the score I will get at high school. I needed to have a 93% to go to the pharmacy college which I always dreamed of and wished to join. I could not sleep all the night because of my anxiety. In the morning, I got ready and went for a walk in our garden to relax. While I was walking, I saw my cousin come faster to tell me that my result appeared. At that moment, my heartbeats became faster. He told me that I got 89.6% in high school. For a while, I could not believe that. I thought he was kidding, but he said the result had just appeared. I ran to my home and called my friends to make sure that the result is correct, as the mother of one of my friends was a principal at the school that I am. Also, my uncle called his friend who worked at the same school and asked him about my result who told him it was true. It was impossible. I was shocked and felt disappointed. I spent all the year studying only and took many lessons in the most difficult subjects. I worked very hard to achieve my goal so that I could join the College of Pharmacy. I felt that I could not make my family happy, especially because they encouraged me and supported me all over the year. In fact, I cannot forget that morning. It was full of worried and sad feelings. It was afternoon, and I could not stop crying. It was hard for me to know that I did not get the result I wanted. And I could not fulfill my ambition. My dreams were gone for nothing. My uncle told me that we can submit a grievance and review the results of the exams, but I refused because that requires a lot of time, about a year. As I could not wait that long to not waste one year. Through that afternoon, my family tried to calm me down. During that hard situation my family and my uncle especially supported me a lot psychologically. And they always repeated to me that I did everything I could and did a good job, and I should not be sad because I did not neglect my studies. And my uncle told me that I am proud of you. To conclude, being with my family and their presence beside me helped me a lot to calm down and felt better at the end of that afternoon.

Memorable Moments

Finally, in the evening, I was better and my relatives came to congratulate me and gave me some beautiful presents. They were happy with my results. Also, my friends came to my home and spent the night speaking with me. In fact, my result was not that bad. I was sad because I wanted a specific college and that college required a higher grade than what I got. However, by the end of the day, I was satisfied and accepted my grade. And that was because I did everything I could. To conclude, the evening was not bad and I felt more comfortable than I was at the beginning of the day. In the end, my result day was a difficult day I cannot forget at all throughout my life.

The Best Day I Have Ever Had

Fjorda Hysenaj Albania, Level 1

Ukraine, Level 2

It took me about one year to do it because of Covid-19. For the last two years, they started to do things very lazy. I was excited and worried, so sometimes at night I could not sleep. I had insomnia, so I |

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Solomiia Boiechko Ukraine, Level 2

I went through an unforgettable experience when Hurricane Grace hit Mexico. It happened on the 5th day of our vacation in Tulum. It started getting windy around 6pm, and all visitors were told to stay in the room. The hotel staff was very organized. They brought dinner and breakfast to each room. They told everyone to close the metal door on the balcony. We were watching the news, and it said that there was a category four hurricane brewing on the ocean and that people were evacuated from many Tulum resorts. The wind increased, and it was starting to make squealing and screeching noise. It sounded like a train one minute and a wolf howling the next second. It was terrifying. It went on all night. The next day, when the storm passed, there was a mess outside. Tiles lay on the ground, and tree branches and coconuts were everywhere. The wind tore doors and roofs in the restaurants, and it uprooted dry palm trees and dragged them on the ground for several meters. Fortunately, all people were safe.

Lesya Bulchak

The day I became a U.S. citizen was very important for me. My whole family already has citizenship. First, I applied my application one year ago. After, I paid $715 and sent it. Then I started to learn one hundred questions, and I looked at my application because there was all my information about my job, family, and my whole life.

Finally, the day arrived. I was called for fingerprints and citizenship. First, I was called for fingerprints. I did my fingerprints, citizenship, and in the same day, they took my photo for future documents. One month later, I was called for Oath of Allegiance to America. I was very-very nervous, but at the same time; I was proud and so very happy for myself. It was difficult for me, but I did it.

An Unforgettable Experience

The most beautiful day for me was my birthday in May 2020. When my husband surprises me, he takes me to a place I really wanted to visit. When my husband gave me a surprise, to visit Niagara Falls. It was a genuinely delightful surprise for me because I really wanted to visit Niagara. When I went there it was really a miracle, but the most beautiful part was when we went boating. The boat ride was nice, because you could see that you were in the middle of the waterfalls and between them you could see a colorful rainbow. The Canadian part was even more beautiful than the American part, because the Canadian part has lots of nice bars and restaurants to visit. To visit one of the wonders of the world for a birthday is a day not to be forgotten.

The Day I Became a U.S. Citizen

taught myself questions at night. Also, when I was in my car; I listened a lot of times my one hundred questions.

An Unidentified Flying Object

Virginie Gilles France, Level 2

I experienced something so amazing that I will never forget it. I would like to tell you about it. It was during my summer vacation when I was 13. We were four: Suzy and Ginette, they are sisters, and they were like grannies for me. There was also Manon, 12 years old; she was like a cousin to me too. We spent a few days in Suzy’s house together. At first, it was a usual evening; we were on the couch Memorable Moments

watching TV. The window was open; the neighborhood was quiet, but suddenly, Suzy yelled and showed us the dark sky outside. Then we decided to go out in the yard to get a better look at what Suzy showed. It was a UFO! It was so huge, like a soccer field. We could see three lights coming on and off alternately. This thing moved very slowly in the sky above houses of the next neighborhood. Suzy and Ginette were so excited to see this UFO! They moved their arms to say “Hello” to the people inside the aircraft. I observed silently, and I wasn’t happy about all the noise they made. The sisters decided to call their brother. During this time, I stayed alone by the window observing this thing in the sky. Manon was inside with the grannies. So, I was the only witness of an incredible event: this aircraft stopped in the air, and it directed a beam of light above a house for several seconds. After that, the aircraft stopped the beam of light and continued to advance slowly, but suddenly accelerated to disappear. Finally, I was so terrified I decided to call my mother to go home, but she refused because it was finished, and I was safe with Susy and Ginette. This event was so crazy for me. I didn’t have any answers or news after that, so I don’t know what we saw that evening. I am sure about one thing: it was an unforgettable experience!

we didn’t have a direct flight, so we stayed in Frankfurt and waited for the next flight. The flight was delayed. She started to become impatient, so I used her toys and books to calm her down. The situation didn’t seem so bad. We had it under control. At last, we embarked on airplane that will take us to the U.S.A. Then, the gates of hell opened. She was already tired, we were tired too. She lost her interest about the toys and books. She started to cry and scream. I succeeded after an hour to stop her, or she was just tired. After that, she started to sing loudly and laugh too. And in the end, she disappeared under other passenger’s seats after running away through the airplane’s aisle. The situation was calm when we landed. She fell asleep like an angel, like nothing happened. We had so much emotion through this trip. We were amused, concerned, desperate, tired, amused again, and in the end, relieved. Now we still remember our experience. Now we can laugh about it and make fun of it. I wasn’t fun then. It wasn’t fun at all.

An Unforgettable Experience, My Daughter’s First Flight Roxana Negrut

First Place Prizewinner Romania, Level 2

My husband and I made plans about a trip in the United States of America. The plans worked perfectly. We bought tickets, we decided what we supposed to take, and what we were supposed to visit there. Everything seems perfect, except one thing. My daughter who just turned 4, and never flown before. She is an active child, and she never stays still. She likes to run, dance, and sometimes when she is tired, she also likes to scream. Suddenly all my plans had to be adjusted. The flight will be very long, so in order to calm her down, I must be prepared. I read a lot about others’ experiences. I packed a lot of toys and books. At that time, it seemed that I have control over the situation. Oh, I was so wrong! Let me tell you what happened. First, she was full of excitement and she didn’t sleep on departure day. Second, 12

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Memorable Moments

their grave is our home their death is our death

The Story of My Move

Challenges Aleppo

Elona Culiq Second Place Prizewinner Albania, Level 3

our coast is covered with the bodies of dead children with cities bombed in the belly we swim in the waters filled with corpses removing with our hands the dreams that had fallen out of their eyes our silence has taken root and is building walls of blindness we do not see it doesn’t hurt us this is not our war these dead are not ours we swim fearlessly in the waters that wave extinguished human souls nothing is certain fear is bigger than the sky above and consolation is a yellow flower that blooms in the late mornings the end exists we do not see it it sees us it limits us I wonder if there is time to repent ? we remain indifferent as the dead gather on the shore 14

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Inna Blyzniuk Ukraine, Level 1

I will tell you my story about where I’m from, and where I’m going. I was born in Ukraine, in a small village. I went to school, had a happy childhood with its joys and sorrows. There I graduated from school and medical college. In 2019, my family decided to move to the United States. Nobody knew what awaited us and whether it was worth changing the place of residence, but by some miracle, because of what happened to our documents, you can’t call otherwise. In a short time, we moved to the USA. So, a new life began, everything had to start from scratch. First, it is another language and another culture. Second, it is a different climate and time zone. In the first days I got a lot of stress, but at the same time it was interesting and a little scary. But, you get used to everything, and now time has passed and everything is fine. When I lived here for two and half years I understand that it was the right decision, because during this time I learned a lot that will help me go through different experiences in my life. I have great hope and faith that together we will defeat evil with good, because, our future depends on the present. In conclusion, we will try to fill our present with useful things, so that our future and the future of our world will be bright and peaceful.

My Son’s Birthday

Immaculee Mukanyandwi Rwanda, Level 1

The day I gave birth to my son is a very important day to me. His name is Ron. I gave birth on the 18th of June in 2020 at Cleveland Clinic Hospital. He is one year and 9 months old, almost 2 years. The first day I knew that I was pregnant, I was so excited! First, I took a shower. Next, I put on my clothes then I went to hospital. I developed high blood sugar. It was not easy, but God helped me. I thank God so much because I gave birth to healthy baby. When I think about it

Challenges

today, I feel very happy, and I consider this day to be a very special and important to me.

My Story

Kiljung-Jang South Korea, Level 1

ESL Voices

Ukraine, Level 1

I’m from Ukraine. First, there passed my happy childhood, school years and youth. There I met my love. On June 4, 2011, we were married. Later our daughter Olga was born. Second, in 2013 we won the Green Card. We were very happy, but the unknown awaited us. Then, we arrived in America in 2013. The first day we had a tour of New York. The next day we went to Erie, Pennsylvania. We lived there for 5 years. In 2015 our son Matviy was born. After, I went to work in daycare in 2017 because I have loved children since childhood. Next, in 2018 we moved again, but to our own house in Strongsville, Ohio. Our family was very happy. Our daughter went to school. Our son went to daycare, and I got a job in a daycare of the Ukrainian Academy. Finally, this year I went to study English at Cuyahoga Community College. My goal is to learn English. I dream of raising happy and intelligent children. I want to find a job that I like. I still dream of traveling a lot. For every stage in our lives we rejoice and give thanks. We have only positive emotions and many friends.

Tetiana Lupashtian Ukraine, Level 1

I was born in Ukraine, and when I was 35 I moved to the United States. First, In Ukraine I lived in a small town. There I studied, went to work and met my future husband. Second, I got married and had two wonderful children. Then my husband went to France to work, and he was gone for three months. It was very difficult without him and we missed him very much. Later, we moved to the United States. We lived with my parents in Philadelphia for six months. I went to work on cleaning as my husband went to study to be a truck driver. After that, we decided to move to Ohio. I went to study in the college. I really like learning although it’s hard. My husband went to work on the truck. Finally, I would like to see my future successful. I want to have an interesting and paid job to my liking. Also, I want to buy a big nice house so I can live happily there with my family. I would also like to be able to travel a lot. This is my past and my plans for the future to find my own way in life to live it for a reason. 16

Iryna Shtynda

I had a very interesting life in my country. But when our family won the Green card we were very happy and decided to go to America.

I came to America last year because my wife wanted to live with her sister who lived in America. One day my wife got a call from her sister. She wanted to live together with her family. I thought, how will I live my life in America? At that time, we bought a new apartment and life was good. I decided, even though I was too old to study in America, I was destined to go to America if I got a visa. I think my life is variety. Even when I got married, I was living in the southernmost part of Korea. And 4 years later, I went to the Philippines to work for 4 years, I had many new experiences there. Now I am here in America with my wife. I go to college to study English. It’s too hard learns English. But it’s a very precious time in my life. I’m a bit used to America life now. I bought a new car and a house. I’m really excited and looking forward to my America life in my late 40th year.

My Story

My Family Story

A Terrible and Wonderful Year

Altina Ago Albania, Level 1

Many things happened in 2009 and 2010 that made me stronger. August was a special month for me. I got married on August 09, 2009 with the man of my life. It was a happy day and the most important day of my life, but my mother was not there. She was sick, so she did not see me in my white dress. I do not have any photos with her on the most important day of my life. After the wedding, my husband and I went on vacation. I was very happy with my husband, and the vacation finished so fast. We came back to our city Berat, and we started to live together. In the fall season, I learned I was pregnant. This news made all my family happy. Our life and our family’s life was calm and happy. After that, my father started to feel bad, and after three Challenges

weeks we learned from doctors that he had cancer. That was a terrible moment for me and my family. All my brothers and sisters came to my parents house, but we could not help him. We were so powerless before that disease. All winter time was terrible for us. After four months, he died. It was March 24, 2010. That was the worst day of my life. I could not believe he was not with us anymore. I felt so bad, but I needed to think about my little baby inside of me. I tried to be strong, but it was so hard. All my family was so bad at that moment. We lost the most important person in our lives. My mother was alone now, and she was sick again. My husband and I decided to live with my mother. In May, my husband and I moved to my parents house. I returned to my home with my mom with another person now that was my husband. My pregnancy was going well. We learned we had a baby girl. On July 16, 2010, my baby girl was born. It was a big day for me. I became a mother for the first time. Finally, everyone was happy. All this year was a big test for me.

My Story

Reda Ayman Ahmad T Ali Jordan, Level 1

I have many reasons why I came late to the United States of America. My father is an American citizen. I was born in Jordan in 2002. My father wanted me to be born in his country of origin because he wanted me to learn my native language and my native country’s traditions and my religion. As I grew up when I was nine years old I asked him,” Could I go to America?” His response was no because you are still a little boy. After that, I felt sad and then I completed my education normally. Next, I finished my high school, so I asked my father again to go to America and he agreed. When I got to America I started working with my father at his gas station, but I didn’t like the work very much because the area was so dangerous. After that, I started looking for another job, then I found a job with my cousin in a warehouse. This wasn’t a bad job, so I continued with it until one of the people I met in my work invited me to work with him in a burger restaurant, and I agreed. At the same time, I enrolled in the college to complete my education. As you can see, this is my story. it is a story that started a little difficult, and until now I suffer from difficulty, So I hope to rearrange my thoughts. 18

ESL Voices

My Story

Tetiana Dubiv Ukraine, Level 1

The day I came to America, I thought that I was a very happy person. I come from Ukraine, namely, from the city Ivano-Frankivsk, which is in the west of Ukraine. That’s where I’ve lived most of my life, and I always remember it with great joy. I have always dreamed of visiting America, but these dreams became even stronger. When I was pregnant with my son, I was twice at the USA embassy to get a visa, but unfortunately my visa was not approved. However, after the birth of our son, namely on May 7 2019, we learned that we won the green card. After completing all the documents and obtaining a visa, we had an obstacle on the way to America. It was then that a new disease appeared in the world. It was Covid-19. The planes stopped flying because of Covid-19. We had nothing to fly to America, and our dream could not come true. So, we started looking for another way out. That’s how we learned about the so-called special flights. So, in May 2020 we were able to fly to America. I will never forget this day. Now I am building a new life here, with new dreams and goals that will surely come true. As you can see, despite all the obstacles, we were able to make our dream come true. There are still a lot of interesting things ahead.

My Bad Years

Mallak Abuazzab Jordan, Level 1

The three years from 2018 to 2021 made a big change in my life. It started on November 15th, 2018 when my family got ready for our first vacation. The traveling members of my family were my mom, Mary, my thirteen year old sister, Lolo, my one year old sister, and me. I was 17 years old. We decided to come to America to attend my cousin’s engagement party and to have some fun. First, we came here without my father and my 19 years old brother because of the visa. We stayed here until January fifth, 2019. Our first two weeks were good. The rest of the trip was bad. We had to prepare for the party without help from my cousin. We made preparations for the entire engagement party. We did not go out, also did not see anything here only once they took us to the park. It was a very bad trip. Challenges

When we returned to Jordan in January, the first week was fine, but then our life became very bad. My mom found out that my dad was having an affair with his teenage girlfriend. It was disgusting because his eldest son was in university. Why was he doing this after twenty two years of marriage? My mother wanted to get divorced, but he refused. They were arguing day and night. My brothers and I could not sleep. My mother asked her brothers to help her and make my father divorce her, but no one accepted. We were like this for six months. Everyday there were problems between them. My mom told him to get out of the house, and leave her with us so we could live in peace. Whenever he wanted he could come and see us. My father refused, so my mother left the house on June 1st, 2019 and went away. She took my little sister Lolo with her because she was sick with seizures and took medication. Then my father forbade us from talking to her because he thought this was going to make her come home. My dad thought my mother was going to come back to see us, but my mother did not come back. He wanted to marry me to someone. The news reached my mother after two days, and she got crazy. My psychology was in ruins. I did not talk to any of my brothers or my father anymore. After that, my mother came to see us and talked to me. She told me that you do not agree no matter what happens. I told her that if something official happens I would kill myself. I scared my mom because I was so serious. Two weeks later, she came again and told me and my brothers that she had booked tickets. We were going to America. We did not tell anyone because we were going secretly. One day later on July 14, 2019, she came to take me and my sister to the airport and we went that same night. We were very sad for my brother that he could not come with us, but there was no solution. When we were in the air, my father found out we were gone. He went crazy when we arrived, he told my mother that he would kill her, when she came back to Jordan. And he told her that he wanted my sisters and me and also said that if she gave us to him he would divorce her. My mom did not answer and stopped talking to him. My mom got so sad because of my brother. Actually all of us were sad too. After that, we started a very difficult time suffering with my aunt and her daughter and starting to live in America without money or a home. All this big change happened in these few years. 20

ESL Voices

Where I Was from and Where I Am Going

Dina Shagayo Tanzania, Level 1

My life in my country was difficult. I was from Tanzania camp and I was born there. We were people who didn’t have anything, but they gave us food, clothes for free. We were studying but no job. We were living like the orphans. We studied well, but when we finished school we get farming. When you have job, they pay sh25 in USA is like $10 a month. I came in USA in 3 years ago. It was by the grace of God. We lived in my camp for 18 years. I was feeling good to come here because coming here was my dream when I was in African. In USA we are living good with my family. Also, I remember my sister who is alone with her children, but we believe she will come. I need to finish my degree and take 6 months to study transportation business. After 6 months I will take flight attendance class. I like so much to work in flight because I can help people who travel and who don’t know English, but they know Swahili, Kirundi, Kibembe, Kinyarwanda and some African languages that I know. But, if it will be impossible I will be a model. Also, after all that I hope to get a good job. I will get married and start my own family. Sometimes life can be difficult in different ways. It may be because of life change, poverty or war. However, when you stand up and do everything and praying with faith nothing will be impossible. My life was bad, but I am grateful that, I and my family have a good life here in American.

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Where I am From and Where I am Going

Valentyna Makurina Ukraine, Level 1

I was born in Ukraine, but when I was forty -seven years old I moved in United States. Ukraine is my homeland. I was born in Ukraine, grew up and studied there. I love its beautiful landscapes, forests, and rivers. After graduating I got a job in a bank, I worked as a counting cashier. It was a responsible job, and it was a valuable experience. We had a friendly team, and I liked my job. Around the same time, I met my loved one, got married and had a daughter. I was happy in my country. A little later, because we wanted to be with our family together, my husband, daughter and I decided to move to the United States. This decision was not easy for us, because we understood that we would have to start all over again and study and look for a new job. But the support of our parents, brothers and sisters helped us decide to move. And so, we are in America with a different language, culture, and lifestyle. We started from scratch. Here is my first job, I started working in the hospital in the kitchen. Here I first learned what part time is and for me it was a new experience. To communicate well with people, I need a good knowledge of the English language, and therefore I went to Tri-c to learn it. Next, I am going to take courses in office management and have a job I love. I know that my arduous work, will to live, passion to do what I love will allow me to achieve my goals. This is a good motivation for a good future. I hope America will become my second home.

About Covid 19

Mimoza Vodinaj Albania, Level 2

Since the Corona virus started, people’s lives have changed a lot. The way of working and living has also changed. People have been staying at home and working in the computer. I read a lot of experiences in the internet, and I want to share them with my classmates. It is miracle how people become productive, and have shared their experiences with people around the world. I also have a real event from my sister’s family. When the Covid 19 started, my niece prepared masks in her home. She prepared them with her love, 22

ESL Voices

and shared with people in her social media. A lot of people came in her home and took them. Her family have been working day and night. This virus has connected members of family, which is admirable. People have been helping each other. However, this virus in dangerous and unpredictable.

My Eyes

Irankunda Ndaruzaniye Kenya, Level 2

One day in Africa, I had sick eyes. I went through some experiences that I will never forget. It happened when I went to fetch water with my friends. And my parents were working at a restaurant. My siblings were at home playing with their friends. When I was fetching water, my eyes started hurting and giving me pain. I started to touch my eyes and I told my friends to look into my eyes and see if there’s anything in my eyes. Then one girl named Janine looked into my eyes, and she said nothing was in there. After that, I went home and I slept. I didn’t tell anyone at home that my eyes have been hurting and giving me pain all day. The next morning when I woke up, my eyes were red, and my big brother asked, why are your eyes red? I answered, since yesterday they were hurting me. But I didn’t tell anyone here. When my parents heard that, they were so terrified. They took me to the hospital, and l no one helped me at all. My eyes continued to hurt for like three month, but it seemed like three years to me. At last my dad decided to take me to church to pray for me. Then they prayed for me. And after a few days my eyes got better. I was really happy when my eyes got better. Now my eyes have healed and now I can see well as other people. And I thank God for healing my eyes. Thank you so much.

Change Is the Most Interesting Thing in Life

Uliana Stanishchuk Ukraine, Level 3

Often each of our days is similar to the previous one. We do the same things every day, do the same things, and generally have Challenges

our own routine. The usual constant schedule of our life creates such conditions under which we get used to the same thing at the same time, and this is definitely good for us. We are in a protected, unchanging circle called “Everyday Life,” but what if something or someone suddenly breaks the integrity of this circle? Will he make a hole in it or even tear it up and make a square out of it? And how do we do it ourselves? This “suddenly” is called change. I belong to the group of most people who are afraid of change. I got used to a stable life and even the thought of any changes make me nervous. Some changes in my life happened without my desire, but these changes opened my eyes to life and all its beauty. The changes were both positive and negative.

Finally, the negative change is that my family lives in another country. My family is a part of me and I am very sad that I can’t spend time with them like it was before. That I can’t come to them for Christmas, Easter, or make a surprise for birthday. I can’t be with my grandmother when she has high blood pressure, I can’t check my father’s blood sugar level, I can’t hug my mother and help plant flowers in the garden, I can’t meet my childhood friend over coffee, I can’t be in Ukraine to see the medical university graduates. It’s very hard. Sometimes I feel empty, like I don’t have enough air. I didn’t understand all these things before because I was in a comfortable environment. I changed my outlook on life. I began to appreciate the time that I spend with family and friend.

The first positive change in my life was the birth of my son. I was so happy and excited. With the birth of my son, I became much kinder, calmer, more caring. I enjoyed my baby growing up. I watched his first smile, his first word “mom”, his first step and dance. When he went to first grade, I cried with happiness, how handsome and elegant he is. I understood what motherly love is.

Analyzing the changes in my life, I begin to understand what was not a value for me before. As our lives change, so do we. They paint our lives in different colors, make it bright. Changes have taught me to appreciate what I have, to love even more the people who are dear to me. Now I listen more than I speak, I think more than do something. I learned a lot, and most importantly analyze the situation. It does not matter whether our changes are positive or negative, the main thing is that we draw learn from them.

The second positive change in my life was moving to the United States. I was so delighted with the scale of the cities, the architecture, the design of the buildings. And I was struck by the fact that Americans are very friendly people, when I’m in the store or at the gas station everyone smiles, greets and asks “how are you today”? When I’m at a doctor’s office or at a bank, they always try to help me. This attitude warms my heart even more, I was convinced that I wanted to live in this place. I also grew to want to help and support people. The third positive change is that I broke up with my ex-husband. Living with him was hell for me. He drank every day, did not spend the night at home, and when he got fat he came home and started beating me. He also destroyed me morally. Over the years of marriage, I have accumulated many complexes. There has never been a day in 5 years of our lives that I did not cry. I cried with despair and shame, helplessness and fear. But one day I said enough. I am very tired of my married life. I realized that I’m not a toy to play with, not a punching bag, not a clown to be laughed at, I’m a woman. I deserve respect, love and understanding. Now I am much stronger than I was before. I feel safe, I am happy, joyful.

ESL Voices

Narrative Essay

Iulia Coclenci Moldova, Level 3

Once upon a time… All love story starts with that and ends with … they got married and live a long happy life and die on the same day. Unfortunately, in our childhood fairy tales, no one says that real-life starts just after the marriage begin and this life is a continuing war for being happy and living a long life together. My happy love story starts after we get married and there were too many events, but especially one of them brought us closer to each one and made us stronger. Is like in the song Counting Stars by OneRepublic “Everything that kills me makes me feel alive.” One of those stories was in the fall of 2014. This was our first year in the USA without language, support, and knowledge about what this country represents. At this time, we had just twin boys-one-year-old. Somehow, it had been good but not for long, until one day I left boys Challenges

sleeping alone in the car in Florida state and I went to the store to shop. Somebody saw that and called the police because there is a law prohibiting leaving children in the car. What a day… Finally, the police left me to go home with the boys just with a court ticket, and thank God for that! I was so scared because I was thinking that was not the end and that I flew back to my home country with the children a couple of days after the incident. If you ever heard how a heart can break into a thousand pieces, you know that is the sound of despair of a mother who leaves her babies for a long term. I left my twins at my parents’ house and flew back to the USA to solve my irresponsible decision that I made once. The back flight was the longest flight in my life. Fifteen hours of guilty tears and negative thoughts that I am the worst mother in the world. Only one thing that covered my negative storm was that they are in good hands with my mother and there will be a time when I can take them in my hands again. Once I returned back I went to travel with my husband. He started to work as a truck driver and I was just like a passenger helping him with calls, maps, and documents. So, there began my way to learn and use it at the same time as the English Language. This was the first positive factor resulting from that horrible story. The second was living with my husband in 4 square feet for five months. We didn’t have to rent anything and we saved all the money for a lawyer and to bring children back. We save on everything first of all on food expenses. Sometimes we stayed hungry for days. Sometimes we had been eating one canned food for two adults once a week. It was hungry, hard, and painful, but we were together and together we were stronger. Also, from that experience, I discovered my husband from a different perspective. I found him responsible, very kind, and very wise. Our marriage stepped to the next level. At least one of us needed to stay wise at that time because there wasn’t a day that I didn’t cry. Being together in hard situations resulted in those positive personal challenges. “After the Storm Comes the Sun,” is the title of a book written by Shelby Wagner. After that adventure, the sun came into our lives too. The lawyer won the court with minimum negative effect for me. Next, we figured out our problems such as finances, renting an apartment, and being ready to bring our children back to the USA. We bought 26

ESL Voices

tickets back to my home country and finally, my suffering ended at the time when I held at my chest, my baby boys. And how all the fairytale ends with a huge party the same as and my story ended with a happy huge birthday party for my husband on thirty years. In conclusion, this story made a deep scratch in my human being and helped me to grow from an irresponsible teenager to a mother and a wife. I usually never tell this story to anyone because I was in charge of everything, but here I wrote it because I don’t want to be sneaky anymore. A guarantee for a long and happy life together as a family is to take responsibility for your choices no matter if they were right or bad, recognize them, and be prepared to change yourself to be better for those who love you. As a result, my family became closer, much stronger, and more valuable. I hope that my story will end with…they lived together a long and happy life cherishing each other died on the same day and their children and grandchildren grew up the greatest people and told me their grand’s parents love story … The End. Citation: One Republic. Lyrics to “Counting Stars ”Genius, 2013, https://genius.com/Onerepublic-counting-stars-lyrics Wagner, Shelby. After the Storm Comes the Sun. Independently Published, 2021

Moving to the United States as a Teenager

Kathia Vizcarrondo Puerto Rico, Level 3

When I was 16 years old, my mom got a call from one of her friends. She told her that at her job, where hiring and that she could start as soon as the next day if she wanted it. My mom and dad decided that it was a great opportunity, and my mom called her friend back and brought her plane ticket. Everything happened fast during the same week we did not have much. She only left with one suitcase and 40 dollars in her pocket. Two months later, my siblings and I met her to start school over there. We lived with my mom’s friend and another family in a 2-bedroom apartment. Living with so many people we did not know was a challenge but starting in a new high school was complicated. I knew some English but Challenges

not enough, and I found it difficult to concentrate, make friends, and understand the material. I remember I used to cry every day because I did not want to go to school; my mom tried to convince me, and so did my dad, but I felt so bad that I stopped going and dropped out. They enrolled me in homeschooling. While I was at home doing homeschooling, I would walk my sibling to the bus stop and school; at this point, our living situation was not the best. We started having problems with my mom’s friend; anything we would do would bother her. She would say we were too loud or scream at us for looking for something to eat in the kitchen; she would blame us for whatever would happen, she said she did not want us in the kitchen, so we were not allowed to eat anything until she made something to eat. If we wanted something to drink, we had to ask her or her daughter. It got so bad that my mom would buy us snacks and drinks. We would hide it in a suitcase to eat something while we waited for my mom to come home from work so we could eat. My mom ended up giving me a debit card so we could walk to Walmart or McDonald’s to eat something because sometimes she would not get home until late at night. After my dad met with us in Orlando, we moved into a motel. This was the beginning of something good, yes, we were living in a motel, and yes, it was not always good, but it was just us together as a family. I ended up finishing school early because I was homeschooling and decided to enroll in a technical college right in front of where we were living. I took the baking and Pastry course.

in the school made me more compassionate and showed me something that I would love to do in the long run.

When I Moved to the United States

Dolores Cruz Ramirez Dominican Republic, Level 1

I moved to the US in September 28, 2019 with my family. That was a great experience for me because my life totally changed. That day found a new life, different from everything I had lived. There is a better quality of life here, but in my country I was more comfortable, for example I had my own business and I was with my whole family. It was an experience for me because I had to learn many new things, like different driving rules and different cooking methods from my country. I came here with my children and none of us speak English at that time. Everything was new for us and very difficult, but the time was very nice because I had been separated from my husband for 10 years. My husband lived and worked here and us in the Dominican Republic. First, it was difficult. then we adapted and learn new thing. In addition children began to study and I began to work. Finally we are very happy all together. This was my experience in the United States. Although I was very afraid of change, now I am very happy here. I love everything in the US, and I would like to live here forever.

We had started going to a church close to where we lived, and they were so friendly that they would help us in any way they could. The pastor’s wife was an elementary school teacher, and I would go in the summer to help her set up her classroom cleaning and accommodating. When I turned 18, I signed up as a volunteer to help her In the classroom with the students, and I decided what I wanted to major in. I loved being in the school every day and helping the children. Especially the ESL students because I understood what they were going thru in a way. And it made me want to do it every day. Being in the school made me realize that I’m not the only one with problems, as sad as it sounds. And I feel that it helped shape me into the woman I am now. Because what I went thru in my mom’s friend’s house helped me become more mature and independent. But helping 28

ESL Voices

Challenges

Academic Explorations Good Teachers vs. Bad Teachers

Busra Duzdag Turkey, Level 1

There are several criteria for defining a teacher as good or bad. One of the most important characteristics of good teachers is respect for their students. This will increase the students’ self-confidence and help them with the learning process. Another criterion of good teachers is understanding their students in all circumstances. Sometimes students might have some medical or personal problems; so, their needs should be considered by teachers. This would indirectly affect the learning process of students because if students know that their teachers understand them, they will be more engaged in their classes. Finally, good teachers follow recent developments. Especially after the pandemic, online classes started, so teachers needed to update their technology experience. A good teacher knows how to keep students awake in an online class. On the other hand, I do not think there are bad teachers, but maybe there are less good teachers.

My Opinion about the Comparison between U.S. and Mexico Daniel Emiliano Barrera Miranda México, Level 2

I am going to talk about my experience living in the U.S. It has been hard to use to; I understood that everything is different in this country, and I had to take it seriously because first, all the rules here are stricter; in comparison, with my own country Mexico. Second, I 30

ESL Voices

love the passion of the teachers to teach us in the school. I don’t know if this behavior is the same in all the schools, but I feel lucky to have the opportunity to know all the teachers that I could know. Third, I like that most of the people in this country wants to improve themselves in an educational field; It is completely different in comparison with México, that there like minority wants to make it serious and achieve more educational goals. Fourth, I like this multicultural environment that the country has; In the U.S. are so many different cultures and for this reason everybody can be more open mind and of course they have an expanded view. In comparison, with Mexico we don’t have enough of these characteristics about multicultural things. Finally, I am going to talk about the fourth things that I love of México, First, I love the sense of humor of México. Second, the Mexican´s food is so delicious and spicy. Third, I like that the weather in México isn’t extreme than here. Fourth, I don’t know if it is just my perspective, but I think that Mexicans are more talkative than here. In conclusion, each country has their own good characteristics and I like both, but I always be in loved with my own country of course.

Life with the Children vs Life without the Children

Sona Qaderi Afghanistan, Level 3

Life is plain and ordinary until you have children. When you have kids, everything will change in your life, nothing will remain the same. You will have problems and responsibilities and on the other hand you will have more joy and happiness in your life. Life without children is different in many ways from life with children for many different reasons, such as: having lots of responsibilities, changes in your sleeping schedule, spending money, having troubles with studying, and having a job and having fun, blessing and a good reason for a prosperous and happy life. First of all, I want to talk about the responsibilities that parents have. When you don’t have children, your responsibilities are less and you are just responsible for your problems and necessities but when you have kids your responsibilities get more and more, and you are in charge of everything of your children as well, especially if you are the

mother. Parents should take care of their children’s food, clothes, place for living, their future, and their education and so on. For example, When I didn’t have a baby, I loved having meals outside and I loved fast foods, but now that I have a one year old son I have to make healthy and fresh foods everyday inside my house. I used to stay awake late at night and stay asleep late in the morning, but now I can’t because of my baby’s sleeping schedule, I cannot even take a short nap during the day. Unlike having no children time, you don’t have enough time to study and have a job. The second influence of kids on their parents is having trouble with continuing their education and having a job. No one knows what it is really like to work full time and be a mom more than a mother with children. It’s very hard to go to college or have a job when you have kids, even if someone takes care of your kids or you hire a nanny still you don’t have peace of mind. But when you don’t have children, you can do everything easily. From the moment your child is born, your expenses will go up. When you have kids, you have to pay for all of their expenses. You must provide for them house, food, health care and their education expenses and they vary depending on the age of the child. Based on the most recent data from the Consumer Expenditures Survey, “A family will spend approximately $12.980 annually per child in a middle income ($59.200-$107.400), two child, married-couple family” (Lino). In our culture when you have children you have to supply everything for them until they get bigger, especially for the girls until they get married their parents must pay for all of their expenditures. So, I think each parent should first make sure that they have enough money in their budget then decide for having kids. For each parent their children are a source of joy and happiness. With the kids parents feel the way that they never felt before. With my son I enjoy from little things, for example: every day when I finish my classes and go downstairs my son start laughing and running toward me and it makes me happy, every day when I wake up and I say good morning to my son he starts smiling and playing with me it makes me very happy. I never experienced this kind of happiness before in my life. In my country we say that the kids are angels and they bring happiness, joy and blessing for the parents and the houses. Some people believe that the people who have children live longer than the 32

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people who stay childless “Researchers believe it is because adults’ immune systems are refreshed when toddlers go to nursery and start picking up infections. During the course of someone’s life, their immune system can become weaker. But when kids start bringing infections home, their moms and dads immune systems get a workout” (Hayes). In conclusion life with the children vs life without the children have lots of differences and similarities. But according to my text there is more differences than similarities, as I mentioned in my first paragraph after having children everything will transform, sometime you will have troubles and challenges and sometimes you will have joy and pleasure in your life. In order to raise your children you need more money, patience, enough time for your kids. When you have kids your responsibilities get more and you will have less time for yourself but the good thing is that you have the most valuable and precious feelings in the world with your kids. 1- Lino, Mark. (2017, January 13). “The cost of raising a child.”. U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Cost of Raising a Child | USDA 2- Hayes, Andy. (2019, February 25). “Parents live longer than people who don’t have children, study suggests.”. Sky News. Parents live longer than people who don’t have children, study suggests | UK News | Sky News

Learning English

Julita Nakaro Tanzania, Level 3

My name is Julita Nakaro and I’m from Tanzania and I speak Swahili. I came to the United States of America when I was 16 years old, I didn’t speak or understand English. When I first got here my first impression was to learn English so that it can help me to communicate and make friends. Learning English is very important, especially because it helps me to communicate with other people. Learning has been a fun and enjoyable journey in my whole life. The three important ways for me to learn English are: School, friends and watching TV. One way was at school. I went to two different schools, in two different states. My first school was in Tucson Arizona. When I started school my English teacher told me that every day after school I needed to take five books home. So I started reading them and participating in class too was helpful, the way they were teaching was so unique and I was thinking it was just like where I come from the ways teachers teach Academic Explorations

there. The second school that I attended was Lincoln West High School of global studies. They were a little different from learning English but the English teacher was doing kind of like my other high school. Basically we used not to do things like group words and some of the teachers usually give you a lot of work and they don’t really explain much. That was really challenging to me because my English wasn’t improving that much. Second, I learn English from friends. Whenever we get homework, we will meet in the library and start doing homework. They will explain to me more then five times until I get it, then after that they will come with a game that is kind of the same with the homework we have to help me better. After that we will play other games of pronouncing words because they knew my pronunciation wasn’t good enough so they will help with that too. Some of my friends where from Asian countries and they come to learn English and new opportunities, we used to have a lot in common and that make us connected and start helping each other in learning English journey. Third way of learning was tv shows. When I first came here I didn’t know any English words. The tv show called Criminal minds helped me a lot .When I started to watch the TV show, it taught me how to greet people in English. My first words to learn were Hello, good morning, and how are you. My first time going to a supermarket I used those words and I was happy about it because I knew that was a great start. Watching the Show with subtitles on was so helpful. Finally, learning English hasn’t been an easy journey for me because I started learning English when I was 16 but I didn’t give up. Every day I’m learning new things and I’m proud of myself for being able to communicate with people around me and help others like me whose English is their second language.

The Journey to Learning English

Marzan Hossain Bangladesh, Level 3

From my childhood I was told the necessities to learn and be able to use English. In my country, Bangladesh, the first language is Bengali but if there’s any second language, it is English. In Bangladesh, everybody knows that to get a good job or to go study abroad or 34

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work abroad, you need good knowledge in English. There were a few things that helped me learn and improve my English. My first exposure to English came from my mother. She had been a teacher all her life and taught fundamental English in her classes. From her, I learned all the English alphabets and learned how to make simple words and sentences at my young age before starting my school. Then, when I got into school, I learned English in a broader way with all those other students. They started teaching English from kindergarten. In kindergarten, using English was important in every class and outside because it was an English Medium School. English medium schools focus on speaking and grammar skills in students. I started my 3rd grade in a different school because our family had to relocate. It was a Bengali Medium School. And English wasn’t mandatory except the English classes. Bengali Medium Schools don’t focus on speaking skills at all. So even though we always had two English classes in every grade, the development didn’t happen because we never really practiced speaking in English. Although, English had been taught to us since kindergarten, we didn’t really use it in our real life which didn’t really help us learn well. A change had happened for me when I was in grade 9. A new teacher came. And he had a totally different method to teach English. He had us practice speaking in English every day. Taught grammar in a different way so that students could understand easily. After that, I slowly began to speak in English in his classes. Sometimes outside with my friends. I started to text in English. I was enjoying it. Learning any language can be difficult at first. It’s important to listen as much as possible to improve your listening skill and vocabulary. From a young age I used to watch sports almost everyday with my brother. We used to watch soccer everyday and never missed our favorite team play. I used to see my brother paying attention to the commentaries and I had always wanted to imitate him. Over the years I realized that I started to understand many things, like phrases, difficult words, and sentences. So, watching soccer played a great role in my learning process. Real game changer was when I moved to an English-speaking country. When I came to the US, I could barely make a long conversation with an English-speaking person. It sorts of frustrated me. Academic Explorations

As I started working in the US, I had to collaborate with my co-workers and managers which helped me with my speaking skills.

such as how to apologize. All in all, that middle school English class helped me a lot, and I created good memories with all my old friends.

It was clear to me that listening to others and keeping the speaking habit can enhance your knowledge in any language. Finally, when I was introduced with audiobooks, it changed my life. I was improving on my listening everyday and I was seeing improvements.

The next way that helps me learn English is that I watch a lot of movies and Tv shows. Watching these Tv Shows helped me learn how to pronounce and spell some words like a native speaker. This was the most challenging process, because it is often hard to watch the movie and read the subtitles at the same time, especially if you are not a native speaker. Games of Thrones, which is my favorite Tv show, Vikings and Money Heist are some examples. In addition, I can spend about one hour and half watching an episode that is 50 minutes long, which is very complicated. To put it briefly, learning English by watching movies improves not only your vocabulary and pronunciation, but it also gives you a better understanding on how to give general ideas.

This year I started my college in Cuyahoga Community College in Ohio. I have three English as a Second Language (ESL) classes. I am lucky enough to have all great teachers in those classes. I am still learning English everyday to improve and I know it will go on for a while because I still have a lot to improve. Without the help of my parents and the teachers I wouldn’t be able to come this far. Learning English comes from more than one place. I welcomed every chance I got, to learn this beautiful language.

How I Learned English

Elysee Kwitace Camara Guinea, Level 3

My English language learning process was such a long journey with many challenges and fun. While some people find the English language to be difficult to learn, others find it fun, because they have better techniques and ways that help them learn faster and easily. This fact applies to me as well. When I got to the USA, my English language improved in two years. I was able to speak more clearly than many people that had been living in the USA. Here are three ways that help me learn the English language faster: learn some basic English, watch some English movies and Tv shows and I listen to a lot of English music. I started learning basic English in my home country Guinea, when I was in middle school. I was about 12 years old, and we had a teacher who was only there to teach us basic English. During the first year, our English class was only once a week with one hour of class. The class was challenging with so much fun at the beginning, because we had difficulties with pronunciation. For instance, I still remember that I mispronounced the word “water”. During that period in middle school, I learned how to count from 1 to 100, the alphabet and the days of the week. We also learned some English expressions and good manners 36

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Listening to music is another way I use to learn English. Since this is one of my favorite hobbies, learning English in this way makes it more enjoyable. Some English singers such as Rihanna, Ed Sheeran help me with their songs. The song “I found a love” by Ed Sheeran is so lyrically written and clear that I learned and I am able to sing the full song. By practicing this I improve not only my grammar, but also my pronunciation. Another example is the song “Man Down” by Rihanna. Sometimes, I have difficulties toward this process, but with the consistency that I have, I keep my learning on track. Altogether, this is the easiest way to learn, because by listening to a song lyric more than 5 times, it gives your brain a better understanding on how to say these words every time you see them. To sum up, the English language learning process has been such a long journey with many challenges starting from the first day. But with all of these ways of learning, I have been able to improve my English a lot. Now, I am able to speak clearly, to lead a conversation, but there is still more to learn. As long as I keep my learning on track with consistency, with hard work and a lot of practice, the goals of speaking clearly and fluently as a native speaker will be accomplished.

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Learning Morals and Character Development

Banan Shikh Third Place Prizewinner Syria, Level 3

Knowledge without morals and character has no value. Knowledge and ethics with a good personality together increase a person’s reverence. They are two sides of the same coin. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “Intelligence plus character — that is the goal of true education.” Many believe in the role of the school and the teacher on the personality and behavior of the child and their influence on children after parents. Although there are those who believe that the job of the school and the teacher is limited to teaching and explaining scientific subjects to students only, such as mathematics and science, I believe in the importance of including classes for teaching ethics and developing the personality of students in schools. Many parents are looking for their children to be distinguished and superior scientifically in school. In addition, the majority are certainly concerned with the behavior and personality of their children. I see the importance and role of teaching an ethical subject in schools and the interest in the child’s personality and development of it in schools which teach the student the difference between right and wrong and between darkness and light, and help them to create a strong and successful personality. We all know that children spend a lot of time in school, and school is the first place that children go out to without their parents. They are in a large and different society from their homes. So schools have a great role in shaping their personality and behavior after the parents. There are some who argue that this teaching of morality and character development is a bad idea. First, there are some teachers who might believe that their job is limited to teaching the curriculum without looking at directing and developing students’ personalities. In reality, the teacher has a great and powerful role in influencing and changing the behavior and personality of students. It is also possible to radically change the life of the student, as happened with the teacher Erin Gruwell who transformed her students’ lives. She encouraged them to re-think rigid beliefs about themselves and others, reconsider their own daily decisions, and ultimately, re-chart their future. With Erin’s 38

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support, they chose to forego teenage pregnancy, drugs, and violence in order to become aspiring college students, published authors, and catalysts for change (Freedom Writers Foundation). We all know teachers are supportive and influential for every student. How were many of us affected by a positive or negative word from a teacher who encouraged them or had a negative influence or motivation to prove the opposite? Some parents may refuse interference in raising their children. They might think raising and guiding children is the role of parents only, without outside interference. Certainly parents are the children’s primary support; nonetheless, the double work by the parents and the teacher shows remarkable results. Also, sometimes parents need help and advice from specialists to deal with children’s behavior. Having specialized teachers in schools who deal with the children on an ongoing basis would be an effective solution. For example, there are children who are outgoing at home but shy and introverted in school classes, so supporting and encouraging the teacher and placing them in situations that change their behavior are the best solution. Also, the teacher sees the way the children deal with their peers, and this is what the parents do not see. Here, the teacher can direct the children to the correct behavior to properly deal with others. There are people who believe that morals are not taught, but are a practice and lifestyle that the student should follow from their surroundings. They believe that these things students learn from reality and not through indoctrination. However, the UAE has proven the effectiveness of including moral subject classes in the curriculum for all educational levels. The scientific lessons include an integrated curriculum in addition to practical application through activities, such as volunteering and cooperation with charitable institutions and the Red Crescent. Japan also preceded it in this experiment and decided to include the subject of ethics in schools, which proved successful. A major argument for morality in the curriculum is that implementing teaching ethics and developing the personality of students in schools results in a good generation that respects values and principles. Moreover, it has great effects in direct form and in the long term. Interest in the personality of children makes them more confident and more successful in the future, and it helps them to make decisions. In addition, it makes them more creative and able to give Academic Explorations

and deal with life. It also works to create future leaders. This builds the student’s personality that fosters resilience, persistence, perseverance, and a work ethic. It prepares students for the stage of adulthood and provides them with health, mental, and physical awareness. According to the Moral Education morality curriculum is centered around developing each student as honest, tolerant, resilient and persevering individuals, who reflect inwards on and build an individual sense of morality based on personal outlooks. The curriculum is designed to teach students to respect each other and celebrate differences. Students are encouraged to be aware of the positive impact they can have on other people and the world (Moral Education). The playwright and poet Ahmad Shawqi said, “Nations are strong with their morals, if these morals are gone; they are gone.” Teaching morals and caring for the students’ personality has benefits for society as well. It prepares good individuals for society and enhances the capabilities of the children and enables them to become effective members of society. As stated by Moral Education this curriculum is focused on developing an individual who can thrive in different social situations and make a small change towards a big difference. Building upon the core competencies learned throughout the Character & Morality courses, students will dive deeper into community awareness and how they can become active members of their community, through community service subjects and learning about the importance and value of serving others. It imparts a sense of self-esteem, well-being and respect for familial and interpersonal relationships (Moral Education). Besides, teaching morals and caring for the students’ personality reduces or eliminates bad behaviors that harm society, such as violence, insulting others, theft, and others. There can be no doubt that the inclusion of an ethical subject in schools has a positive and effective role on the student and his personality as well as having an impact on society. However, governments should have a role to play in promoting and implementing this program and providing resources for teachers training and preparing them to do this task. This program gives us hope for a successful generation to build the future of the homeland. In addition, it develops responsible, cultured, engaged adults ready for the wider globalized world and develops student awareness of the shared human experience and makes them messengers of the values they embody (Moral Education). 40

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Works Cited A teacher of hope. Freedom Writers Foundation. 2020. Web. April 30, 2021. http://www.freedomwritersfoundation.org/about/ Character and Morality. Moral Education. 2017. Web. April 30, 2021. https://moraleducation.ae/ The Individual and the Community. Moral Education. 2017. Web. April 30, 2021 https://moraleducation.ae/ Objectives of Moral Education. Moral Education. 2017. Web. April 30, 2021 https://moraleducation.ae/

Two Types of Learning

Hanna Yendrys Ukraine, Level 3

Thanks to advancements in technology, distance education has become more accessible than ever before: with most U.S. colleges and universities now offering a wide range of online graduate and undergraduate degree programs. To understand better online and in-person learning, you should try them both. So, since I tried both the first and the second, I have something to compare them. Each of these teaching methods has its pros and cons. I am going to talk about them from my own experience. Do both have the same tests, homework, practice? Yes. You must do your homework, tests, practice, and labs. It takes you the same time to complete as online and in-person learning. You are obliged to perform all tasks regardless of the type of courses you have chosen. You will also use the same courses materials. For example, you will have the same books, resources, access to the library, and tutoring. When you are the online or in-person way of studying, you will have access to these materials, resources, and help when you need it. How about choosing a teacher and study time in the class? You have a choice of the teacher you like in both options. Usually, each teacher provides opportunities for online and in-person learning. Also, you can choose the time of classes, which is convenient for you in both types. Despite some differences in these types of studies, the duration of semesters and lessons in both is the same. It means you will still be able to get all the information in the allotted time. Nevertheless, despite the many factors that are common between these two types of learning, on the other hand, we also have differences between them. So, let’s see the others sides of them.

For the first difference, I want to look at your financial side. If you take traditional learning you will pay more tuition than online. Also, you must pay for your transportation to the college or university. If you take classes online, you may pay less money for them. You can stay at home or anywhere else and continue to get your degree when you are on learning online. Online studying is a good chance for people who have disabilities or can’t take classes in person. If you are in-person classes you will pay more money and waste more time to get there. The next differences between online and in-person learning are the way to do practice and absents. If you choose to learn online, you will do just online work on your computer or apps. If you are on in-person studying, you will have online and papers assignments. Also, you will have more speaking practice and communication in traditional learning than in remote. One of the things is that you don’t have to miss class if you have to stay at home with kids, or you might have a reason to miss it if you are on online learning. You can be in class everywhere if you have internet. When you study in person, you won’t be able to stay at home or in traffic and be in the class. On the other hand, “You may feel less motivated to show up to an online class or make time to learn on your own, compared to attending an in-person meeting with your friends or community members.” (Fultz) Finally, you can meet more people and build a good relationship with them if you are in-person learning. You can have more friends and more practice if you are in person than online. People meet each other best when they spend time together in class, on break, during lunch. If you choose the online method of learning you spend your recess by yourself, and can’t talk with anybody from your class. Usually, you put your camera and microphone off. Also, you can have a final party in the class with classmates at the end of the class on in-person learning, but on online learning, you will enjoy it from the computers screen. Everyone can choose for themselves which type of learning suits them best. Despite your choice, don’t forget who you are and what your goal is in learning. Online learning and in-person learning are fine for people who want to learn something new and know where they go. Both methods are good experiences in studying especially when we have a lot of technologies and opportunities. So, let’s go to study and doesn’t matter which way you will choose.

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Sources: 1. Fultz, J (2021, May 26). Distance/Online Learning vs. In Person Learning: Pros and Cons. Celebrate Edu. https://celebrateedu.org/resource/distance-online-learning-vs-in-person-learningpros-and-cons/ 2. Weighing the Pros and Cons of Online vs. In-Person Learning. National University https://www. nu.edu/resources/weighing-the-pros-and-cons-of-online-vs-in-person-learning/

Motherhood between Dream and Reality

Banan Shikh Syria, Level 3

Motherhood is a great, wonderful feeling, and many women always strive to try this feeling and have children. Children are a piece of the soul and a great blessing in being. Having children gives a different meaning to life. In addition to that, childbirth is due to many changes in the lives of the parents, especially the mother. These changes include psychological and physical changes, changes in relationships and social life, as well as changes in priorities; let’s see what life will be like in these aspects before and after having children. There are undoubtedly psychological and physical differences that women experience after having a baby. We do not say that women’s lives before childbearing is free from psychological or physical problems, but the naturalness of these problems varies. On the other hand, women after childbirth are exposed to psychological pressure and a sense of double responsibility and anxiety for taking care of a new child and taking care of their affairs. Besides, there are other problems, like changing hormones, lack of sleep and rest, and their body shape changes which may affect their psychologically and their self-confidence at times. For example, the size of the chest changes due to the production of milk, and the shape of the abdomen changes due to the expansion of the skin with the enlargement of the abdomen during pregnancy as the weight increases. As a result of all or some of these things, sometimes they suffer from depression. Social life and relationships differ for women before and after childbearing in three points. First, women before childbearing depend on choosing friends that suit them and their personality. Also, women are able to set their appointments according to their own schedule without restrictions or excuses most of the time. Third, they can also go to different places without restrictions, such as crowded places and loud parties. In comparison, mothers prefer to form relationships and Academic Explorations

spend time with people who share the same interests and understand the nature of their life, which makes them choose to form relationships with mothers like they are. Secondly, mothers cannot make their own appointments until after looking at their children’s appointments, such as according to the children’s sleep date, the school date, the doctor’s appointment, or the time to go to music lessons. Third, mothers always plan to go to places suitable for the presence of children, such as parks or festivals that suit their ages. It is certain that the priorities of women can change as well, so women’s priorities differ before and after childbearing. Women before becoming a mom are thinking about their own goals and planning their own ideas and plans. Also, their priorities are to make themselves happy, to implement their plans, and to look at their requirements. In contrast, mothers think about their children and plan for them a bright future and try to make their lives better. Mothers are at the end of the list and the last thing they think about themselves. For example, when they go to the market, they might think of all the things that their children need or want and forget to buy something for themselves. To wrap it all up, with all these changes that have been mentioned and some difficult times that mothers go through, motherhood leaves a miraculous, indescribable feeling. The beauty of this feeling makes you turn a blind eye to these hardships. Therefore, women should take care of their mental and physical health and receive care from their husbands, families, and friends. That will help them to be able to take care of their little one. They should also exercise and follow a diet to help their body return to being as it was. Also, there is nothing wrong with some selfishness to make time for themselves to go out with friends or to do something they like. Giving birth to a new life is a great thing that is worth the sacrifice, but women must not forget themselves.

Travel The Best Place for Vacation

Yibing Xu China, Level 1

I think that Yellowstone National Park is the best place to visit for vacation. First, Yellowstone National Park is one of the most famous tourist attractions in America. Many people from all over world go to there every year, and it is the place my dream about. In addition, Yellowstone National Park has many beautiful attractive spots. For example, there are many geothermal landscapes, canyons, and waterfalls in the park. There are also many animals in the park forest. Finally, Yellowstone National Park is suitable for a family to play for one week. That is, you can go in the park everyday of the week if you buy a ticket once. That is a happy thing to enjoy the gorgeous scenery with your family. As you can see, if you will go to visit for vacation, Yellowstone National Park is the best choice.

Traveling All America

Jianmin Zhang China, Level 1

I think my dream is to travel all America. Do you know why? First, America has many beautiful places such as Yellowstone National Park. I like to visit it. This is my dream. Second, America has many interesting histories. For example, there are the famous American Civil War and Black civil rights Movement. I like to learn the histories. I want to know American histories through my traveling. Finally, America has much culture. Different from the integrity of eastern culture, western culture emphasizes individuality. I want to learn vary kinds of American culture 44

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Travel

by traveling everywhere. In conclusion, I want to travel all through America and deeply know America. That is my dream.

The Trip That Changed My Life

Maryclair Rida Syria, Level 2

The trip was one of the most difficult trips of my life for many reasons. This is the longest journey that changed my life. The journey started from my mother country, Syria, to end in the United States of America in 2018. I had to stop for three to four hours at three different airports. The trip was one of the most difficult trips of my life for many reasons. First, the trip was tiring because of the many hours, which ranged from 32 to 35 hours, carrying four heavy bags and moving them from one place to another quickly, and not being able to sleep. Second, I had anxiety and a lot of thinking about what would happen after my arrival in the United States of America because this trip was a complete transition from my home country to another place, and I had to think carefully about what difficulties I would face in the first period of my move. Finally, I had many volatile emotions such as, happiness because I went to a better place, but at the same time I felt very sad because of the loss of many members of my family and friends. This long journey was difficult and has moved my life to a better place, but nothing is perfect and even sadness can be found in a state of bliss.

What Is Your Favorite Place?

Elena Simona Winze Romania, Level 3

To travel? What does “travel” mean? To travel means to move from one part to another. To travel means a route, a distance between two places (Cambridge Dictionary). I think everyone, any person loves to do this. My husband and I love to travel. We have been in so many countries, but only one has conquered our souls. This country is Greece. I can say that it is my favorite place in the world. Greece is amazing, beautiful, with an “abundance of resources”, and worth visiting at least once for so many reasons (Nations Online).

visit in that country. In September 2018 was my husband and I’s first vacation together, in Greece, and I think because of that I have chosen this country as my favorite place. Until then, we had never been alone on a vacation. In every summer, we used to go with our friends on vacation. Before that, we talked about Greece, and added it to our wish list. One day, I was home, cooking something for lunch, and my husband just came home and told me that he looked for everything that was necessary for our trip to Greece, and we are going to leave tomorrow. I didn’t expect that, and I was very surprised and speechless. I remember that was on Friday, and on Sunday we went to Greece. For our first trip we chose to go in Thasos, one of the islands of Greece. Also, we chose to go with our car; however, it was only about ten or twelve hours of driving until we were there. We spent a whole week there, and I never wanted to come back home. In Greece, I found a place like home, where you can meet kind people who live in small villages. Greeks are welcoming people with a big culture and many traditions. Every night we were looking on google maps for different beaches because we wanted to explore all the island. I have never seen a beach with such clear water like in Greece. Here, I ate a lot, where I tried the best sea foods ever because they are famous for their traditional foods. A good thing was that in this country we spent less money than if we had chosen to go on vacation in Romania. In this last summer we returned to this beautiful country. First, I wanted to go back in Thasos too, but my husband succeed in convincing me to choose another island. We were in Khalkidhiki. It was beautiful too, but Thasos will remain my first love. In conclusion, I will visit Greece whenever I have the opportunity because it is worth returning to such a beautiful place. Also, I could add that I encourage everyone to visit this country at least once because I am sure that it will conquer their soul, like it did mine. I could write a lot of good things about this place because definitely I am in love with this country. Greece, you are my favorite place in the world!

Why did I choose Greece as my favorite place? It is a good question because I am going to tell you a little story about my first Relationships

like a girl and she is the most beautiful girl I have ever seen. Melsi is passionate about animals, but dogs are his favorites. He knows almost all the types of dogs. Melsi say I want a dog to sleep with and to take outside for a walk. His phone is full of pictures about dogs. He plays a lot on the phone and makes video on Tik-Tok. Sometimes we go outside to running, play and buy things together. Melsi says sister do not spend a lot of money. He is very funny for his age. Melsi is also my friend and he is so important to me.

Relationships My Best Friend

Homeless words Nataly Panta Peru, Level 1

My best friend is the kindest person of the world. We spend a lot time together every week. He is married, and his wife’s name is Magda. He has a son. His son’s name is Liam. My best friend’s name is Rey Hernan. We know each other 5 years ago here in the United States. I remember when I was looking for a job in a restaurant like a server. He was the manager there. I knew it! from the first moment I met him, I knew that were going to be very good friends. We usually help each other when we are in troubles ,and also to take care our kids when we have to work, and for any necessity. We always have a lot of fun when we meet in our days off with our families. As you can see, he is a great person, and he has a beautiful family. This is why I chose him like my best friend.

My Little Cousin

ESL Voices

Afghanistan, Level 2

I guess nobody has ears to hear my sound Not alive, not dead, nor bland I guess the world is getting unfeeling As soil as a stone as sand I guess my lips are moving but mute I know it is low, it is slow but cute I guess my words are getting tired out of my mouth Because it is love, it is life nobody cares about I guess my sound is shining same as the sun That is why no one dares to see for or no one can I guess my words are homeless, it is my luck It goes alone, flies alone, comes alone back

Fabjola Smajlaj Albania, Level 1

My little cousin is special to me. My little cousin is Melsi. He is ten years old, and is in fourth grade in school. He has brown eyes and brown hair. Melsi calls me sister. I love him so much and he loves me too. He is a very smart child. He has only one year in the U.S.A. and understands English very well. Teachers says that he is a good student at school. When he speaks we all laugh at his answers. He favorites sport is football, and we spend almost two hours for day to play outside with the ball. Last night he told me a little secrete. He said I 48

Mohammad Wasim Safi

Classmates in the Past

Milian Prifti Albania, Level 2

Several of my memories come from being a child in elementary school and from some of my first friends I have ever had. When I was in elementary school, we were eight classmates from first grade to fourth grade. We were a class of seven girls and one boy, me. I was very shy. Sometimes my teacher would make fun of me and call me a rooster in a pen with chickens. I was raised in a small village. Our Relationships

schools were very small. We had a lot of fun, and a lot of activities together. We became a team. There were many times we would also play “concert.” We would get a stick and pretend it was a microphone, and we would sing and put on a show. When we were older, we did not forget each other. I have been to their weddings and now we are still all friends on social media. Those girls from elementary school were my first friends I have ever had.

My Mom Maria

Wedmara S Da Silva-Popke Brazil, Level 2

My mom has always been always a big example for me. She sacrificed herself to always give to me and to my sister the best opportunities in the life. She had a very hard life when she was young, so she always worked so hard to give me and my sister a better education, so this way, we can have better life than she has in her past. She was teaching us to be strong and believe in God and ourselves. She was teaching us always to be honest and polite to the others. I think I have a very good personality because how my mom raised me. I also think I learned how to be responsible and hard working with her too. I admire her, and I always do my best to be good for her and help her. She gives us many opportunities, and she puts us always before her, and this shows how much love my mom has for me and for my sister. I love my mom, she is always going to be loved, and she is always going to be an example to all my family. I am so happy the see how good grandma she is to my nephew and to my niece, and I pray to God, to one day my mom will have the opportunity to be a good grandma to my child too. This is one to my big dreams, and I know God is always listening to my prayers.

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Young Love

Mohammad Wasim Safi Afghanistan, Level 2

You are my pain, you are my gain You are forgiver of my sin You are my way you are light In every path you are my right I am just fish you are my sea You are power in my two knees You are my eyes you are my sight You are my dream in every night You are my words you are my poem I am like sand you are the storm I am getting weak give me once shock You are my laugh you are my talk You are my sound you are song You were alright but i was wrong You are my love don’t say it´s ban I know you’re sky accept me sun I was just thorn as a small horn You are young love i was just born

What Made Me Happy

Favour Eze Nigeria, Level 3

“The three gifts of marriage are companionship, passion and purpose. It is God’s gift to us, designed to bring us joy and Him glory. With this gift He covered our aloneness, providing us with the hope of companionship, and the joy of connected intimacy,” said Chris Grace. Marriage is a union between two adults who have mutual understanding and agreement to be together for better or for worse. There has been a lot of events and ceremonies in my life, but the one that keeps leaving a smile on my face was the decision I made to get married. In my country, unmarried women don’t have right whether they are home or abroad, so getting married was not just a gift from God it was indeed a miracle. Also, it came with lot of joy giving me the feeling of having a life partner, unconditional love, a sense of security, purpose, and protection. Relationships

First, having a companion and someone to share life experience with is a great blessing for me to date. Before I got married, life left me with no choice other than to sometimes think that I am unfortunate since loneliness was taking the best part of me. I went to events and ceremonies alone, always the third party, while my friends were with their husbands, until he came along with promises of everlasting care, to love and to hold. For example, during the outbreak of covid-19 last year, I was infected with the virus and was very sick. He stood by me, took care of me, even when my symptoms were gone, He said “Just rest, you need it.” He did all house chores, cooked, and slept on the same bed with me, he did not stay away as instructed. According to Chris Grace, “bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh— illustrates the supreme joy of being connected.” Together as one, we have shared our pain, sickness, and joy together: He is always there to listen and give opinions. He is just an amazing man, in him I found a soul mate, a companion and a faithful husband who goes out of his was to make sure his wife is comfortable and happy. Second, the feeling of commitment, love, trust, and honesty has been my everyday experience ever since I got married. We became so committed to one another by building trust and honesty each step of the way. In my home there is nothing like inferiority complex or superiority over another, despite the difference in nationality and language. He always manifests the act of selflessness, giving without asking anything in return. For instance, immediately after I registered for my STNA classes, covid 19 broke out. Also, the driving school got canceled, so he did not only take me for my STNA class, but he also found a driving school in Akron since we couldn’t get one in Cleveland. He registered me and drove me to Akron twice a week until I got my driver’s license. This is what I call commitment and sacrifice in marriage. In addition, when I got admission to study nursing at Tri-C, knowing my old laptop was having some malfunctioning with the keys he surprised me with a brand-new Dell laptop as a congratulation gift. Finally, marriage has given me someone to lean on, feeling secure, protected, emotionally and physically, because challenges are always there. For example, last semester was my first time to study in the United States It was kind of stressful and overwhelming, coupled with lots of assignments, internet issues because I was not too good in operating internet. He was there to guide, help and encourage me. He taught me most things I know today and until date he is still teaching 52

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me. Furthermore, it got to a time I could not handle work and school together, he asked me to drop the full-time job and work part time, so I go to work twice every week, and every other weekend. When am sick God uses him to take all my worry and anxiety aways with his kind words of comfort and hope saying, “It is well with you.” That is why I call him my bundle of joy. (Meaning my loved one). In Conclusion, my marriage was, and it is still a testimony, a thing of joy that I will be ready to share over and over again. Among millions of people that exists in this planet, it’s as if the universe conspired to make us man and wife. It’s a beautiful feeling that I feel deep inside, it’s a feeling that will last forever. It gives me joy, peace, and lots of beautiful memories of having a wonderful life partner. I am so happy each time I know that there is someone always waiting for me to come back home when ever am outside. Someone to lean on and be encouraged by when it feels like life challenges are never ending. In addition, getting married creates a beautiful memory about marriage in me, for it was not just about having a life partner, is about finding the right person for me, because I strongly believe that there is someone somewhere that is destined for every person, for me it came with lot of joy giving me the feeling of having a life partner, unconditional love, sense of security, purpose, and protection in life. Work Cited Chris. G. (2015, July 17). The three gifts of marriage: companionship, passion, and purpose. Biola university. Center for marriage & relationship. hhtps:// cmr.biola.edu/blog/2015/July/17/three -gifts-marriage-companionship-passion-and-purpose/

those who live alone

Elona Culiq Albania, Level 3

those who live alone are frightening they measure life by their loneliness they cook as if for solitude not a bite less not a bite more they fasten the back chains of dresses themselves cursing from the first to the last heaven then they rejoice they did not need anyone Relationships

those who live alone are frightening they set the tables nicely they cook good meals always as for holidays and they sit down to eat alone with their favorite music in the background or in the worst case when they feel nostalgic they rummage through the digital walls of friends’ life those who live alone are not afraid of the dark they do not get disturbed when the cake is burned in the oven do not bother about stacks of unfolded clothes or for a delayed coffee with friends they are fine they are alone they get used without realizing it with absence of another plate on the table closing the back chain of the dress with one hand and combs their hair with one hand before going to bed with one hand stretching the bundles of a hard day those who live alone are frightening they go to the park alone they walk alone they drink coffee alone they talk to themselves they quarrel and swear with themselves about the paths they should take and they finally decide themselves about it they lie on the grass then they read let’s say 232 pages of a book without ever interrupting themselves those who live alone are frightening and the most dangerous to live with

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Looking Forward The Future for Myself, My Family, and the World

Altina Ago Albania, Level 1

I wish for a bright future for myself, my family, and the world. For myself, I want to have a new career in the medical field. I would like to work in the hospital. After two years I will be a US citizen, and this makes me happy. After many years I want to visit Europe and Australia. I would love to visit foreign countries. For my family, I have so many wishes. Actually wishes for my family never end, but above all, I wish for health and happiness for them. First, I want my two kids to finish school, and go to the best universities. My daughter is eleven years old. Her dream is to be a model. My son is nine years old, and he wants to be a soccer player. I want them to realize their dreams. I will support them all my life. Second, I hope my husband will start a new job. He is trying very hard to start next year. He wants to have his own truck. He worked in our country for ten years, so he wants to work here too. After twenty years I imagine my family being bigger with grandchildren. I love kids, so I will be a lovely grandma. Finally, after all these wishes for me and my family, I wish no more viruses in the world. I think if this world continues like this, happiness in people’s lives will disappear. People are depressed, and they don’t enjoy life. I wish for peace in many countries in the world. Last wish is for nature. People want this world to be a paradise, but they are destroying nature. They should be more responsible, for the place where they are living. These are my hopes for myself, my family, and the world.

Looking Forward

My Story

Amith Gurung Nepal, Level 2

My name is Amith Gurung and I was born in Nepal and that is located in Asia. About my family I would like to say that I’m very happy that I was born into this wonderful family who has always loved me and always has been there for me. They are very lovable and kind. They work very hard every day and night just so that we have food in our table tonight. I speak Nepali and English but Nepali is my native language. I went to Thomas Jefferson for middle school. I also went to John Marshall School High School and that’s where I finished my high school and got my diploma. I only have one favorite subject and that is history. I just love learning about history and want to know more what had happened in the past. In the past I had worked in the company called produce packaging where you cut fresh vegetables and pack them and transport those goods. Currently I am not employed. I am learning English so that I would be able to interact with native speaker more and also thought it would help me in my jobs in future. I live in United States of America permanently so it would be mandatory for me to learn English. My goal is to learn English as much as I can. My dream is that one day hopefully the sport of soccer will take me somewhere high. I do not have any special talents but I do have hobbies and that are playing video games and going to fishing. In my free time I like to mix things up I don’t always like to do the same thing over and over again. Sometimes I hang out with friends and family. I spend a lot time with my relatives also because we are always there for each other. I would like to tell my family and friends that I love them very much. I’m sure they do to. Thank you very much.

Who I Am Today

Andreia Georgescu Romania, Level 3

The person that I am today is working toward becoming a nurse. The four promoters of my path are my mother’s illness, working as a home care aid for eight years in Italy, studying to become a social worker, and working in a factory. The first and the most influential impact that has given rise to form me today was caring for my mom. 56

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I was seventeen years old when I was catapulted into a nightmare. One day, my mom received the most terrifying news that she has cancer. No one is trained how to face this kind of situation. Suddenly, I had to become an adult. I moved overnight from the teenager world into a world of adults. I had to take care of my mom, my house, go to school, and all this situation was amplified by the most heartbreaking emotion by losing the most important reference point of my life, my mom. Her calvary ended after five months because she passed away, but mine continues because doesn’t exist a due date for mourning. My ability in taking care of my mom led me to make a decision when I had the opportunity to find a job such as home care in Italy. I was twenty-six years old when I decided to emigrate my first time in Italy. My experience with my mom’s illness gave me the chance to work for eight years as home care for elderly people. During this time, I realized that taking care of people is fulfilling. Seeing their gratitude for what you do, support them in their physical needs, and even mental support because I listen to them when they need to talk with somebody. Knowing that I can relieve their loneliness I feel I am like a cure for them. Spending day by day with them I’ve matured my decision to become a social worker to be helpful for many more people. And finally, I decided to enroll in a university to become a social worker. My decision to become a social worker was the result of my experiences in taking care of people. I’ve studied three years, and once I finished my studies, I was in training for more than one year. I’ve started this academic adventure with an explosive enthusiasm. Once in the field of my training I realized that I didn’t feel that kinds of sensations that I was expecting to feel, something was missing. What was missing has a name, its name is interaction. I love to interact directly, face to face with people not through papers where they are assigned such as case number. With a heavy heart I dropped out my last three exams. Meanwhile, as I was studying, I met my husband who had lived for twenty years in the U.S. In this way I decided to emigrate for the second time. In 2016 I came in the U.S., and after three months I started to work in a factory. During this occasion I met my best friend here in the U.S. and we spent every day working together, getting to know each other. Working and spending at the same time with my best friend was such a good period of my live, but professionally I was feeling Looking Forward

unsatisfied. Working with machines was so depressing because they are just an accumulation of irons, make a lot of noise, and spending eight hours every day, interacting only with them I felt so empty inside. Only because of my friendship I continued to work there, but I was feeling incomplete. Another reason that scared me to change my job was my inadequacy in speaking English, but one day suddenly, I decided that I would’ve put all my efforts for finding my real job. And finally, I decided to face all my concerns about not being able to speak perfectly English and consequently not have-new prospects for my future. My determination helped me to begin my new job as a PCA (patient care assistant) in a hospital. And this is only the beginning of working toward my goal, becoming a nurse. Along our path we have to deal with unexpected events, and our lives depending on how we react at them, and what we decide in that moment. Before my mom’s illness I wanted to become for my mom desire a lawyer, but after her death my internal emotion have taken over the future events in my life. I can conclude that my cardinal points to become a nurse are my biggest loss of my life, my mom, my dear people I took care of, my failure becoming a social worker, and my discontent for working in a factory. I’m only at the beginning but I’m on my right way.

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ESL Voices 2022

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