I was born and raised in Belgium, a small country in Eastern Europe well known for its famous waffles, fries and beers. Growing up in a small town where anything is reachable by foot and where your close family is practically your neighbors was really nice because you never felt alone; you always had this feeling of belonging and security. On the other hand everyone knew who you were, you were defined by who your family was and what you did or did not do, you weren’t really given a chance to become yourself. Growing up I was always considered as the athlete, the older sister, the daughter of my parents, but I felt like I was never seen for who I was.
As strange as it may sound it was not until I moved to the United States that I found who I was and what I needed to be truly happy. When I first started living in America I was overwhelmed by everything and anything that was thrown my way. Our society makes up all those stereotypes about people and countries that I had a vision of the country that was completely fake and corrupted. Before moving, I would find myself thinking that I was going to a country where people ate hamburgers and drank milkshakes for a living; I was so sure I was going to see a star anywhere I would look. But what I experienced was just amazing; people were kind and open-armed with me. They helped me, they cared for me, they protected me and most of all they accepted me for who I was, I didn’t have to hide, I didn’t have to make up a story for myself… They took me in as I was, the real me, not the sister, not the daughter, not the athlete, just me. They opened my eyes and let me see what a beautiful country they have.
For the first time of my life I was living MY life, I didn’t have to take care of my younger siblings, I didn’t have to pretend to be someone, I didn’t have to please anyone. I would do things that made me feel happy and useful, it made me feel like I was someone that could make a difference. How could that be? I was living in a country with about 11.000.000 people and I felt like I was no one and here I found myself in one of the biggest country in the world and I felt like I was someone that others could see… I truly don’t know how it happened or even when, I don’t recall waking up one morning and telling myself “Charlotte this is who you are”, it was more like I was on a journey of discovering all the things that were not me and just getting rid of them to let the real me become her best self, her true self.
Living in America made me realize that I don’t have to be liked by everyone, people will come and go, they will either like you or they won’t but it doesn’t matter because at the end of the day what truly matters is that I LIKE ME. This journey wouldn’t have been possible without all the amazing people that have crossed my paths and helped me become the person I am today and for that I am forever grateful.
