Small World

This is a small world- They say.

And it's sure true. But it's smaller when you are an Exchange Student.

I was just stalking one of me cousins on Facebook and saw a post on her timeline by one of our YES Pakistan Alumna. After spending some more time on stalking my cousin and that Alumna, I got to know that they both were school friends.  ^.^

There are many more people I know by just the connection of our YES Pakistan Alumni Network. Though it's been a whole year since I've been of YES, it still surprises me how big our network is.

YES Pakistan Rocks!

Moving to India. A Good Bye to my Home!

"It's over!"  was all we were thinking on June 26, 2012, as we landed on the pure soil of my homeland Karachi, Pakistan. Our Exchange program came to an end but a much harder time had started-the time to be an active YES Alumna. I was dreaming about working with the YES Alumni Pakistan and being a mentor for the kids in next groups of YES Pakistan.
We all met our families at Karachi Airport and said goodbyes to each other with hugs and promises of staying in touch and that we'll hang out later.
As I reached home, I saw that everything in the house was packed. Most of the furniture was gone and  it didn't really look like my house. I turned around and looked at my mom's worried face with confused eyes. She couldn't meet my eyes and my heart started racing faster.
-"We are moving to India. By July 10th!", said my mom.
I froze.
The world around me just stopped. All that I dreamed about my future started swimming in front of my eyes.
- Me, as a successful and active YES Alumna.
- Me, training the YES batch of 2013-2014.
- Me, a medical student at AKU or DOW University.
- Me, a Second year student at AKHSS, K.

Nothing mattered anymore!


I had a thousand questions for my mom. What are you saying? Are you serious? How? When?? Why? When? Why don't I know? Where are we going? For what? What about my school?



Whyyy????

But I couldn't. Speak. At all. It wasn't what I had been expecting when I came back from my exchange year in America.
"We decided to move to India while you were gone. Due to religious reasons. As you know all our relatives have moved there. We don't have religious security here anymore...something something..We didn't tell you 'cause we didn't want you to get worried in America...something something.. We wanted you to be happy...", My mom tried to explain.


Happy? me? For leaving Pakistan? Seriously??
I am speechless. Really.
Yes, I am flexible and can handle everything. And I will handle this moving as well as I can. Yes, I am shocked and took some time to recover myself.


It's true, I am not ready! Will never be. How can I??
It's not just about leaving Karachi, my college, my school, my relatives, my friends.
It's about leaving my whole 16 years of life behind. It's about leaving my YES friends; The most wonderful people I have ever met in my life! I was so impressed by the Alumni network we have and was so excited to be a part of the YES Alumni Pakistan.I wouldn't be able to do that. Or would I??

Yes, It's painful but I am strong.
Yes, It's a very big decision, but I am smart.
Yes, It will change my whole life, but I am flexible.
Yes, I'm dead sad for leaving my friends, but I am good at Moving On.
Yes, my family loves me and I love them the most.
Yes, It's unexpected but I know Waheguru has something good in his mind for me.
Yes, The situation is confusing and I need help but I can make it better because:

- I am going to be a part of YES Alumni India and will serve as a connecting agent between India and Pakistan. I can represent Pakistan there, like another Exchange year.-Now, That's fun! :D

- I will go for Biotechnology in Indian colleges; which I would have to do anyway.

- I will be an AFS Alumna in India (AFS is not in Pakistan).

- I will support my family by being there for them all the time.

- I will use all the tools that I used during my exchange year and make it better.

Wait, this doesn't mean that I will not be a Pakistani anymore!
I always have and will always be Bleeding Green!

I am very thankful to all the Pakistanis I've ever met! I love my YES friends and YES Alumni. You guys have always been there for me whenever I needed help. I really wish I could be an Active YES Alumni Pakistan member. But please don't exclude me from anything. I love YES Pakistan!

Friends, Please don't be strangers. I will really miss each and every one of you! You guys share a special part in my life.
Any concerns, please feel free to ask me anything:
My facebook : http://www.facebook.com/sonam.chawla.58
My twitter: SonamChawla1
My email: chawla.sonam@hotmail.com.

In the end,
Love Pakistan,
Love you all.
Remember me in your precious prayers!
Pakistan Zinbabad! Always!

Water and Us.

You can't completely loose until you decide to not try again. The moment you give up is when you just loose everything.
Yes, I tried and yes I fell. Yes, I am hurt and yes, I am powerless.
Yet, like air, I will Rise!
How do I know? you might ask.
I believe!
Life is not about winning and getting away with everything. It's about learning how to succeed. It's about struggling. it's about your destiny. It's not about just achieving anything you want without any obstacles. But it's about learning how to make your own path.
Our life is just like the unstoppable water. When I say it's unstoppable. I mean it! Why? because if it finds rocks and barriers into it's paths, it makes its own paths and cuts through it. Yes, the big waves break into little ones but they don't loose hope.When they break, they suffer a lot of depression. but they stay strong and believe that they will combine again and then get to their destiny. And that's what happens. After a short period of struggle and stress, the waves join each other. When they join, they gain power. That's how you can succeed. If the water decides to give up, I bet it can and then never reach it's destination. But it does not. That's what we should be doing too!

There's always a time of darkness and barriers in your path when you want something. The trick is to stay calm and strong. This time of failure always ends and the sun of success will shine upon you if you don't give up!

Love

Love. How can I help myself from thinking of you when I think of this word.

Blessed

I was eating Samosa. My mother was feeding me with her own hands. I was very happy and peaceful. The Samosa was hot and spicy-perfect for my taste. Suddenly a girl's voice made me jump.

I wasn't at home anymore. My mom disappeared. No samosas. :(  It was my U.S. Government class in America-oh right, I am on my exchange year in America. The lights were off and a documentary was going on the screen in class.

It took me a long moment to realize that I fell asleep during my Gov class. Being in Pakistan with mom was a dream-a beautiful one. My mouth was watered because of the delicious dream. I tried to concentrate on the documentary; which I apparently didn't miss a whole lot, and tried not to think about the dream-which was hard.

After class, I babbled with my friend about how hard is life without your country's food.American food is too blend. Chinese is sweet. There's nothing good for me to eat. I am missing my mom's homemade Pakistani Cuisine. 

-"God, I would pay a hundred dollars for Pakistani street food, right now", said me.
-"Well, that is great. I would get you some Paki food from an Indian restaurant. You give me the hundred dollars. I will take them to Haiti and feed the starving kids out there", said my friend.

I fell silent.

How do we not realize that how lucky we are? How can we ever regret about having this life?
-"My life is so hard. I can't take it anymore!"; My all-time-favorite line.
Hard? Hard? My life? 

Of course, my life where I go to school every morning. Hang out with friends. Have fun all the time. Eat as much as I want. Don't worry about the money I spent..It is very hard. But, the life of a farmer who is working in a field under the killing-hot sun since 6 in the morning, goes home after working all day at 9 at night, looks into his children's eyes and decides how to tell them that they'll have to divide the never-so-enough food among themselves (Again tonight), is easier than my life.

A kid in Haiti. (didn't wanna put a really sad image)

Feeling happy? yes? good. But that is not the point. The point is we all are a bunch of whiny dreamers, who like to build beautiful castles in the air but have no idea about the reality. 

Just be thankful that you are not the little girl in Afghanistan who was killed by a terrorist; because she wanted to go to school and become a doctor.

And that you are not the little kid in Haiti whose parents, house, school-if they even had one, siblings, everybody is dead! Who is left alone to face hunger, agony of loss and a dreadful life.

We are so blessed. And yet so ungrateful. Just recognize the signs of a happy life that God has granted you.

Hate your life?? Put yourself in any one of those examples above, you'll feel better about your life.

Spread the blessed light

 I am blessed! and so are you! If you have the access to read my opinions and ponder upon them, you are definitely lucky enough to have a computer and 2 meals a day. If you are lucky enough, help other people. Support your community. Go volunteer for some fund raising for places like Haiti instead of wasting your time and whining about the world. Stop Whining and just go fix it. If you have the resources, help others!  GO NOW!
Spread smiles..

The world needs love!
Stay Blessed.. :)

The count down Begins..

A year has passed and now we stand on the brink of returning to a world where we are surrounded by the paradox of everything and yet nothing being the same. In one month we will reluctantly give our hugs and, fighting the tears, say goodbye to people who were once just names on a sheet of paper to return to people that we hugged and fought tears to say goodbye to before ever left. We will leave or best friends to return to our best friends. We will go back to the places we came from and go back to the same things we did last summer and every summer before. We will come into town on that same familiar road, and even though it has been months, it will seem like only yesterday. As you walk into your old bedroom, every emotion will pass through you as you reflect on the way your life has changed and the person you have become. You suddenly realize that the things that were most important to you a year ago don't seem to matter so much anymore, and the things you hold highest now, no one at home will completely understand.

Who will you call first? What will you do your first weekend home with friends? Where are you going to work? Who will be at the party Saturday? What has everyone been up to in the past few months? Who from school will you keep in touch with? How long before you actually start missing people barging in without calling or knocking? Who will get breadsticks at three in the morning with you now? How long until you adjust to sleeping in a room again? Then you start to realize how much things have, and you realize the hardest part of college is balancing the two completely different worlds you now live in, trying desperately to hold on everything all the while trying to figure out what you have to leave behind. In the matter of one day's traveling time, we will leave our world of living next door to our best friends, walking across campus to eat, instant messenger, 8:30 classes, and perpetual procrastination to a world that will seem foreign to us despite the fact that we lived in it for years. But it is different now. We now know the meaning of true friendship. We know whom we have kept in touch with over the past year and whom we hold dearest to our hearts. We've left our high school worlds to deal with the real world. We've had our hearts broken, we've fallen in love, and we’ve helped our best friends overcome eating disorders, depression, stress, and death. We've given blood to help a fellow student fight leukemia. We've lit candles at the grotto and we've stayed up all night on the phone just to talk to a friend in need. There have been times when we've felt so helpless being hours away from home when we know our families or friends needed us most, and there are times when we know we have made a difference. One month from now we will leave. One month from now we take down our pictures, and pack up our clothes. No more going next door to do nothing for hours on end. We will leave our friends whose random emails and phone calls bring us to laughter and tears this summer. We will take our memories and dreams and put them away for now, saving them for our return to 
One month from now we will arrive. One month from now we will unpack bags and have dinner with our families. We will drive over to our best friend's house and do nothing for hours on end. We will return to the same friends whose random emails and phone calls have brought us to laughter and tears the year. We will unpack old dreams and memories that have been put away past year. In one month we will dig deep inside to find the strength and conviction to adjust to change and still keep each other close. And somehow, in some way, we will find our place between these two worlds.

In One month!!

:'(

World Nobel Summit 2012

I am Sonam Chawla form Pakistan. I have been placed in Dexter Michigan with AFS. I did a Peace Jam project with other YES students from 6 different countries around the world. Peace Jam was an amazing opportunity only for YES, FLEX and CB students.
  We decided to feed the homeless people for our service project. We raised funds for their meal by selling note cards. We interacted with them and asked about their lives and how did they end up being homeless. We cooked the meal together and took it to them. We were interviewed and our article was published in the local newspaper.
 http://heritage.com/articles/2012/03/10/dexter_leader/news/doc4f5a13a8a8891940285620.txt

After the success of our project, we went to the Peace Jam conference in Kalamazoo at the Western Michigan University on April 21- 22. We met Rigoberta Minchu Tum; The Nobel Peace Laureate form Guatemala there. I was asked by her to join her for lunch on April 21, 2012. During lunch I asked her questions about the barriers she faced in her country and how she dealt with them. I had the most prestigious lunch of my life on that day.
  On April 22, we presented our service project to her. But before that, they asked if any teenagers wanted to share their own stories of who and how inspired them. I was the first one to go On stage and speak in the Microphone. I shared the story of my life with them.I talked about how my family faced problems in my education and how my mother was the only one to support my education. I spoke for more than 20 minutes on stage. After I finished, everybody in the hall applauded for me. The Founder of Peace Jam hugged me and then Rigoberta Minchu Tum shook hands with me and I lit a candle- as a candle of hope and inspiration.
Rigoberta met me in person and said that she listened to my story and I am a strong girl. She said she believes in me and I can change the World. I was so honored to hear such words from A Nobel Peace Laureate!
I was encouraged and appreciated by several people out there. I was interviewed and asked about my life and my future plans.

World Nobel Summit 2012:

After the Peace Jam conference in Kalamazoo, we got a chance to attend the World Nobel Summit 2012 in Chicago. 21 Nobel Laureates from all around the world came and talked about inducing peace in the World and discussed what the Youth can do for that. 

 President Obama's video message for us.
There were rumors of him coming but he didn't come. He sent us a video message in which he apologized for not coming and encouraged the youth to believe in change.

 I met 21 Nobel Peace Laureates from all around the world in the Summit. Three of them I met in person, including Jody Williams (Nobel laureate from USA), Shirin Abadi (Laureate from Iran) and Rigoberta (Guatemala). I was the only YES student to meet Shirin Abadi.
On the second day of the Summit, we had a Peace Jam meeting with Jody Williams. I asked her a question in the meeting. I asked her about my country Pakistan, the relationship between Pakistan and US Government, her personal view about Pakistan and how to solve the conflicts. She came down from her seat and sat on stage and offered me to sit besides her. I sat with her and she answered that She believes in Peace and she thinks there should be no war anywhere. We had a big, interesting discussion because of the question about conditions in Pakistan. Now I am even Facebook-friends with her.
The same day after the end of the conference I talked met Shirin Abadi backstage. I talked to her about the education problems small town girls face in my country and how to make it better. She suggested me to use my computer to spread the awareness, gather people who believe in the same cause and then get started!
  All of the Nobel Peace Laureates were insisting on how Youth can make a difference! They all inspired me. I now believe in change!

 I am a Proud Peace Jammer! I am glad that I came to America and I thank YES program and the State Department for that. I thanks IEARN Pakistan for organizing YES program in Pakistan.

Me with Jody Williams on the right.

Me with Shirin Abadi on the left.

Michigan weather

Sitting on my porch, having a cup of tea at 7 in the evening. Without any winter coat or sweater, I know!
Yes, It is possible in Michigan. Sometimes.
I was so-not-used-to the Michigan weather when I first came to America. It was totally opposite to what I've been living in Pakistan. Michigan is way North in America while Karachi is to the South of Pakistan. K-Town is blessed with beautiful Beaches and sunny weather all year long. Ont he contrary, Michigan has cold weather all the time. Hard to adjust? Nah.. Snow is fun! ;) I had my first snow here in Michigan on Nov 29, 2011.
It was gorgeous..
                                                               
Yes, I loved it! Here's my reaction:

They say that if you don't like the weather of Michigan, just wait for 5 minutes.. Its true! And it has the most beautiful seasons I've ever experienced in my life. Michigan is the perfect place for a vacation.
If I ever move to America, I'll live in Michigan! <3                                                                                                                                

Prestigious

One of the most prestigious moments of my Exchange year: Rigoberta Minchu Tum, the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate asked me to have a lunch with her.
21/4/2011. At Western Michigan University. Peace Jam conference 2011.

Camel, Desert and Me.

-*Dude, One camel? Nah, I've got two camels and I ride them both together, y'know. You wanna know how? Simple.. I put my one foot on one camel and the other foot on the other camel and stand straight like this (folding my arms across my chest).


 -Yeah, this is how we roll.. I know.. Cool. Right? *.. *


-Wow, Pakistan is cool man! *
 The statement read above are not true at all. Do not trust any of the crap there.
The conversation started in my A.P. Bio class when I gave a presentation on Pakistan on my first day of class (this helps making friends and it's your mission to spread awareness about your country). At the end of the presentation my classmates were asking me questions. In one of my classes someone asked me,


- "Do you have food in Pakistan?". 


-I replied "No, We eat sand and mud. Which is more delicious than your Mcdonalds burger. You should try it y'know". *face-palms* 
I mentioned it in my A.P Bio class and one of the guys asked me: 


-*"Do you guys ride camels to school in Pakistan?"* (yes, I was disappointed 'cause I din't expect it from a senior at high school) *giggles by the whole class*


- I said "Yes, we do. It's fun".
 
Since that day, everyone in that class started talking about American stereotypes about the rest of the world-specially Pakistan. I always used to make fun and jokes out of the stereotypes and we just used to laugh it out in our class. 
The joke grew bigger and bigger and eventually people started to ask me about my camel's name. It was no more limited to my little class, it was spread all around my friends in Drama too.
I asked my friend Jake Claflin to name my camel-since he was the first person to start it- and he named it "KANGAROO"!  *Yeah, I know it's weird but I liked it.*
-My friend Nate Kilian even thought that Pakistan's National Animal is Camel- which is just ridiculous. 
-My friend Max More thought the lump on the camel's back is to hang the backpack on for school- God, Nooo.. we've got good cars (that are from China *wink wink*). 
-My friend Taylor Petri thought that we wear turban Arab hats and cloacks-Pakistnais are more Asian than Arabs. So, that is also not true.
The camel joke grew bigger and bigger becuase I gave presentations about Pakistan in a lot of my classe around school. it has became so popular, that my Drama friends Adam Walters, Jilliane Hook, Alex Henry and Riley Baker have even decided to form a facebook group called "Camel buddies".
We just can't stop ourselves from laughing when we talk about camels.
The stupid stereotypes can be very annoying and sometimes bullying, but the point is to learn from it. I am here to tell Americans about my country and make them understand how it actually is and that the Media is Never Right! 

If the comments ever bother you as an exchange student, the only solution in to Laugh it Out! Yes, make jokes like I did. Join them in their stereotypes and have fun imagining things you never thought about. It's actually interesting to see how far can your imagination go.
  We are here to have fun, so why not?? And the most important thing is I made friends. I got to talk and be friends with my classmates because of my camel that doesn't even exist.Yes, it helps!
In the end, I would thank all the wonderful people to make my day everytime in A.P Bio and make me laugh. I love my camel buddies!
Stereotypes are actually amazing if you are optimistic!   

Freshmen stage- part 1

No, I am not a freshman at high school, I'm a senior-thank God. The first two months of your exchange year are kinda like your freshman year of high school.By the third and fourth months usually you become a sophomore. The Fifth till eighth month, you become more comfortable with your new life and become a junior. By the time you go back to home you have been through the senior stage and you have graduated finally--Congratulations! yahoo.. ;D
My freshman stage was more comfortable for me. Since the organizations that you get, look for the family that more suits your lifestyle so as to make you comfortable and have the family you can easily adjust with. I got a family which had the same interests as me. This helps! but not all the interests match. You have to respect each other's interests that don't match and participate in everything. May be you like what they like.. Just give it a try!
My school had still a week to get started when I arrived. It made it a little easier for me to get prepared earlier and also hang out.With my family, I went to rock climbing. I failed the belaying test 4 times but did it the fifth time I tried-keep trying! I attended the AFS (my organization) meeting. They were all welcoming and sweet. I was satisfied to see that AFS cares about us-AFS is great! ;D So the first week was fun and I adjusted in my house easily.
When the school starts,you should be careful and confident. Talk to your counselor about your interests in subjects and discuss what you want to do. They help you select the classes you feel good with. Don't make things too difficult. If you take 3 difficult classes, take 2 easy and fun classes-make it balanced.
I joined many clubs of my interest, it helped me make friends. The most fun club is The Drama Club. Theatre is always fun. You don't need to be an actor to be a part of the productions, you can be a tech member and have fun. I enjoyed being a part of it. Get involved in sports-This also helps.
I went to a church in my area and participated in their youth group activities-which is fun and helps making friends.I was relieved to find some familiar faces from my school and became more close friends with them.
When I first went to the church, those days they were having their Youth Encounter Week-the fun time. We did a scavenger hunt one afternoon, went around the whole town and took pictures at different places according to the clues we were given-another way of bonding with people.In the evening we had a talent show, in which you just have to do a small funny act with just a little unique thing. The friends that I made in the afternoon included me in their group and we decided to do a dance performance but funny and unique!
I never realized I had the ability to perform randomly and include creative ideas until I did it in the talent show. I was surprised with my performance. People loved our act because I included some words from my language URDU-they liked it. It was something new and unique to Americans. This is how they got to know that I am an exchange student and they started thinking that I was cool and I became famous. It was a great idea to go to the church youth group. They are always cool. The kids were in the same school as me so I got to know a little more people in school as well! :)
while making friends you gotta make sure the people you're hanging out with are good. You should not hang out with drug users or anything like that. I had no problem with this, hopefully you will also be fine!
So the first month just passed by in my school, adjusting with my new classes and making new friends! You mainly feel homesick in the first month but involve yourself in several tasks and the days will pass so quickly you'll never even notice! :)