A Journey Home
Where is my home? Home to the average person is a place to relax and feel like they belong. A home is where you escape from all your troubles and consider yourself at peace. Such was the case for me before I came to England. At 11, I was whisked on a plane and transported to a foreign country with a vast difference to my own. Ghana is a place many would consider poor and lacking in many; however, it is also a country filled to the brim with happiness. Like many countries, it has its poor and rich, and I genuinely love that country. Above all, most of my family lives there, where my roots are. This, however, is not to say I do not love England.
On the contrary, my love for this place is considerably different to my love for Ghana. From its dreary weather to the crumpets, honestly, what’s not to love?
I made this place my home.
England is where I made and lost friends. It is where I first saw snow and had some of the best snowball fights (even though now that aspect is sourly lacking). I felt some of the coldest weather in my life and where you could always feel wet due to the constant rain. In Ghana, it rained, but there is always continuous sunshine, so the shower has a cooling effect. However, here it’s always wet and always cold. I used to love this about England, but recently I have realised I prefer the sunshine.
England is where I have spent the majority of school years, from the last years of primary school, the seven years of secondary and the two years of the sixth form, is where I found my first job and understood the concept of hard work. Although they might be a tad bit of dislike in this aspect of love due to some miniature hardships, overall, I love every aspect and would not change it for anything.
After I first arrived in this country, I was shocked. In Ghana, the majority of the road are not paved; as a result, you can see the sand, the gravel and the dirt of the streets where cars are parked. Here, there is not even a speck of dust. But what shocked me the most was the parked cars on roads. This still seems to be and is unsafe and honestly a horrible idea to this day. Most of the time, you can’t even see the road you are about to cross because of parked cars, but that’s just me. Another difference I was surprised by was the houses. In Ghana, homes are entirely detached. I was surprised when I saw all the places stuck together when I first came here. I thought, ‘why are they all stuck together? Do they all know each other? And can they all hear what the other has to say?’ After living in one of these attached houses, I realised the answers to all my questions. And honestly, I still prefer detached houses, and hopefully, I will purchase my own in the future.
Another surprise was the buses. The big red buses. In Ghana we have nothing like this so this was a handsome surprise.
I gave this place a chance, and I found that even though my love for my home is and always will be Ghana, I do not mind having another home and maybe many more in the future. Honestly, moving to a new place is and always will be daunting. But I am happy to have moved here. And hopefully, I will be able to travel further to add many homes to my list.
