"It Will Get Easier" by Qiaoling Chen ('18)

When I met Laura she said she had always had vivid, richly colored dreams that she could easily remember what I say to her. Keep trying no matter how hard it seems, it will get easier. She told me, she wrote this in her diary.

She said sometimes she thinks about doing one thing that is hard for her, then she would read this sentence and it would bring her more energy in being able to work. Then she began to find out that the more she practiced, the more she would get more familiar with that thing. For example, Laura is an immigrant from China, she doesn’t know how to speak English. And she always questions her pronunciation of words. When she asks her classmates about the homework that is due, they do not understand what she is saying. Then Laura became more shy. She didn't want to speak again, and she became afraid that other people don't get what she means. But I told her, you need to be more brave, keep trying no matter how hard it seems, it will get easier. I tell her, in life nothing is easy, we need to practice what we don't know. Just like how you are not familiar with English, but you stand in a new country, and English is the language you need to communicate with. If those people don’t understand what you say, you can repeat it once, twice, or more times. Or you can add your body language until they understand what it is your mean.

When Laura went home, she practiced English very hard, she could not escape it anymore. She said to herself, I need to speak English. She can overcome it. Then she began to participate a lot, sometimes her classmate didn't know what she was saying, but she was not afraid anymore. She began to face them, and she would repeat what she said one more time. Now Laura's pronunciation is much better then before. She has had the experience of learning a new thing. We can’t give up in the beginning because it is difficult, we need to give ourselves a chance to touch it, and try it.