Weak Dream: A view into yourself

  I decided to join the International Student Association and got admitted.  Today, I am participating in preparing food for a BBQ event on Friday. This is not my first time to cook food. Although I'm no stranger to the kitchen—thanks to my time with the Vietnamese Student Association—today's experience was different. A friendly girl ended up helping me with almost everything, which was nice, but I still felt a bit out of place.  I am not a talkative. I always stay in a group with at least one student who is talkative and answer their question so people will think I am talkative. Unlucky, today, no talkative students. Maybe because we have to talk in our second language, we keep silent and do our tasks.  Things changed when someone accidentally took my phone. I almost cried because of my complacency.  Although I am a person who always cares about my stuff and always takes my phone in my hand, I lost that habit when I went to Taiwan. Camera everywhere, and no one...

 People who live in the country want to move to the city. People who live in the city want to move out.  It is weird when I think about my future. Each day, I move to some fixed locations in my life. Every day, I study hard, hoping for a day to become rich and get a reputation, to achieve what society defaults to. Even so, no matter how hard I try, I’m still just another nameless soul in this city.  During my school years, I have been told to study hard and to push myself. But I never have been taught to prepare for a lonely life in the city.  The world is developing every day. Along with that, people rush around, and sorrows sink deeper into their souls. We have more friends on Instagram. We share our lives through photos. But we feel more isolated. Because we only share happy moments. We seek attention through happy photos because no one cares about our loneliness. We appreciate every reaction from everyone, even though there are people we only meet ...

 Today, I had a conversation with my mentor. We made small talk, trying to overcome the language barrier and understand each other. In that convo thing, I find the best information I want to know: the exchange program to the USA. Computer Science in UIUIC?  My family has wanted me to go to study in America for a long time. But as a child, I didn't understand anything; I was just naughty and did the opposite of what my parents wanted. I used to have a list of things to make my parents angry. That is what I regret the most. I used to tell my parents I didn’t want to study abroad. When I realized what my parents did to me and changed my mind, it was too late. I almost had to study in my home country, luckily I found Taiwan, the right place to pursue university. My delayed maturity cost my parents time, money, and health, as well as mine.  But now I'm standing before an unprecedented opportunity to correct my mistakes. I know I can't just sit still and pray while contempla...

 It is not always advisable to save money. What I realized today after I replaced my phone screen.  I am not a person without money. I have a lot of it, but my spending needs are very low. I used to live in a village with an average income compared to the city. So, people are frugal. I am influenced by it.  When I go to any coffee shop, I will buy the cheapest, and I don't care about how it tastes. When I go shopping with my friends, I won't buy anything even if I need it. When I'm thirsty, I won't buy water; I will go back to my home to drink water even if it takes me 1 hour. There are many things that I look back on that make me feel frugal. However, I can blame it on my own lack of needs.  The last time I regretted buying an iPhone. I was hesitating between iphone 13 pro and 14 pro at that time. I chose iphone 13 pro because it was cheaper, although iphone 14 pro suits me better. I'm so stupid. The price difference between those two machines is only 3 million VND...

 I just called my high school classmates. They went to our teacher’s house for the Vietnamese teacher’s day. I'm glad they still remember me. I'm glad I can see them.  The call only lasted 5 minutes. There were so many things I wanted to say, but my emotions kept me from speaking. I realized that my friends all had their own lives and new friends. They were still my high school friends, but I felt a little distant. Maybe because people's hearts have gradually filled with more people. My teacher is still the same, still has the same loving eyes as every day. Even though he is no longer our homeroom teacher, he still considers us as his children. How should I say this? This is the first time my class meets after graduation, and I can't attend; I can only watch them through my phone. Looking at familiar images of classmates laughing and joking with each other, I suddenly realized that I used to be like that. I used to be the class monitor. A meeting with the old teacher t...

 Today, my university is holding an event. They call it sports day. My class is required to dance on the sports day to welcome the deputy. After the dance, we are free. If anyone signs up for the competition, they will attend it. If I were in high school, I would sign up immediately, without thinking. But this is the university, not my high school, not my old friends with the same language. They talked in a different language. I was too shy to join, because I'm not good in their language.  I regret about it now. It was a chance for me to make new friends and practice my second language. While everyone was participating in the competition, I just stood and watched, thinking about my choice. I think I made a new wrong decision. Even though I try never to make a bad choice again, I probably can never do that. I can only minimize the number of times. Now that I look back on my choices, I still regret them and wish to return in time. Actually, if I could go back in time, there are ...