Reflection
The Things Living Abroad Has Taught Me
Living and working abroad all these years, learning Italian, and being part of an international community, has taught me much more than I ever expected.
When you're surrounded by people from different countries, cultures and backgrounds, you automatically learn tolerance. (Why does no one queue for a bus? Why can I say “Cosa” in Italian but saying “What?” in English sounds too brusque?) You begin to realise just how much of what we consider “normal” is simply what we're used to. The way we communicate, eat, work, socialise and even show politeness can be completely different from one culture to another — and that's fascinating.
This has always stirred my curiosity. Instead of wondering “Why do they do things like that?”, I find myself thinking, “I wonder why?” And that curiosity has opened up so many interesting conversations and helped me understand people in a much deeper way.
Language has been another unexpected part of this journey. I came here to teach my own language, but in many ways, I've become a student of it too. When someone asks me “Why do you say it like that?”, I'm sometimes surprised by how difficult it is to explain something I've used instinctively all my life! Teaching has made me look at my own language in a completely different way — to notice its little rules and exceptions, its similarities with other languages and, occasionally, its complete lack of logic. But I love that. It reminds me that we never really stop learning, even about the things we think we know best.
Perhaps that's what living abroad has given me most: a sense that there's always another perspective, another way of doing things, another language to listen to, another culture to discover. It has widened my world, and I'm grateful for that.
