Hi again! It’s Amairani from Monterrey, Mexico and I’m currently studying at Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC) in Reno, Nevada.

In my first blog, I shared how my journey brought me to TMCC. This time, I want to share what it really felt like to start over in a new country. 

In this second blog, I want to share what my first months in the U.S. were like when I arrived two years ago in Michigan. Without speaking any English, I began to feel homesick and miss my job in Mexico. I felt like I needed something to do, something that would give me direction again. I’m not going to lie, I even wanted to go back home during my first month. Looking back, I think it was because I had left behind years of hard work building my professional career, and staying home full-time didn’t match the goals I had for my future. 

By that time, I didn’t even have a driver’s license yet. I also lived in a very small town where there wasn’t much to do. I could barely speak English. I could maybe read it and write it, but speaking? That was another story. Words would get tangled in my mind and just wouldn’t come out.

Everything changed in June 2024 when I got my driver’s license (funny how such a small piece of plastic can completely change your life, right?). Suddenly, I was no longer stuck in the small town where I was living and found a non-profit organization that offered English classes. It was 45 minutes away from my house by car, but I didn’t care. For my own sake, I needed to be doing something to keep my mind busy. I needed so badly,  and that’s where I began to build something very valuable: confidence. For the first time since moving to the United States, I felt like I had a purpose again.

I met people from different countries who were trying to do the same thing as me: learn English!

Since I like variety and enjoy learning, I started looking for more places to improve. That’s how I found different non-profit organizations and English schools (four, to be exact!). Before I knew it, my calendar was full of daily English classes.

I met a lot of people, and some of them became best friends. Everything was going well; my life was starting to feel like me again. Making new friends, discovering new places. Can you imagine how I felt? Just months earlier, I had been afraid to even order food at restaurants, and now I was making friends from different parts of the world! And honestly, the best part was being busy again. 

So, if you're struggling to adjust to life in a new country, don't be afraid to step outside your comfort zone. Join a club, take a class, or simply start a conversation. You never know how one small step can change your entire experience!

Amairani is an international student from Monterrey, Mexico, pursuing an Associate of Science degree at Truckee Meadows Community College in Reno, Nevada.