That Week-O Info Pack Overwhelmed My Anti-Social Self (Brenda)
Orientation is only a week away. (Full stop to let this truth sink in.) I was having a Gossip Girl marathon after sleeping in until 12pm, when my mother came home from TAFE with my Week-O information pack on her hands, which she had just retrieved from our mailbox. I ignored the somewhat thick package until I was done with a whole DVD worth of episodes and only then bothered to open it. Even though I’m thrilled for life – uni, that is – to start, I am also terrified of everything it’ll encompass. Wait, did I just admit that?
Having moved to Australia just over two years ago, I would’ve thought I’d grown out of my fear of new, different and challenging situations. I left Brazil at 16, and moved to the other side of the world, with only my parents and my younger brother as my safety blanket. Mind you, the furthest I had been from my city was a roadtrip of four hours. Two years, a new language, two schools, three houses and a million homesick fits later, I got accepted into Arts – my dream course ever since I arrived in Melbourne and set foot on the Parkville campus. Every single dream of mine just came true after years of hard work in which I proved myself capable- and yet here I find myself, scared all over again.
If you’re reading this, maybe you know how I feel. I’m 18, still living with my parents, working part-time in retail, and I wasn’t part of the cool crowd in high school. (It took me a while to get a hang on English, and by the time I did I was too focused on doing well in my VCE exams to bother with my social teenage life.) Obsessed with all kinds of storytelling, I am a believer in fairytales who thrives on everything that enhances my intellectual pseudo-nerd self. Oh yeah, and I forgot the most important part: I want to change the world, a book (that I’ll write) at a time. Hoping to double major in Creative Writing and English, being an university student is everything I’ve wished for during the last few years. And yet, for just a split second, I had to be honest with myself and (mentally) scream: I’m scared!
I know I’ve got the academic part down. I’ve already gone through a major life change and still managed to cope with my workload and grow as a learner. For the assignments, lectures and tutes, I can barely sit still with excitment. What I am afraid of is meeting new people. Week-O is devoted to all the fun, community aspects of our university experience, and that package overwhelmed my anti-social self. That’s going to be my toughest challenge this year – develop real friendships with people in my course. But since I’ve both survived VCE and got into Melbourne Uni, I’m thinking I’ll be okay.
So here it goes, a challenge for myself: talk to as many people as I possibly can and join clubs next week… even though I know I will not be feeling like it. And if you’re scared like me, maybe you should do the same. Who knows? Maybe you’ll be standing in a cue and gather the courage to say hi to that girl next to you… who so happens to have that Brazilian accent and is just as freaked out as you are. And then we’ll become friends.
Here’s hoping for a not so socially overwhelming Week-O.
Brenda
Hey Brenda, don’t freak out about meeting new people 🙂 things like that just happen and you’ll make a bunch of friends, me included. Just out of curiosity, what language did you speak in Brazil?
Silvia: Yeah, I hope so. Maybe my six months of retail work will have helped by now and I won’t be as weirded out about meeting new people as I used to be… Hopefully! And my language is Portuguese – not Spanish, contrary to popular belief. 😉
Jake: Hahaha, awesome! Guess we’re even, then, ’cause you’re comment made me smile too. I’m so glad to know I’m not the only who’s been feeling a little bit meh about all the new people. I am hoping too the awkwardness won’t last… forever. (Maybe I should have put negative as another of my traits.)
I had to smile as I read after having woken up at 11:43am myself. 🙂 Earlier I had to pause my Supernatural marathon to read the Orientation Guide 2011 which eventually brought me here. I’m not really looking forward to the first time I have to meet everyone to be honest, but the inevitable social awkwardness has to fade eventually. I have no idea what’s really happen in the next few weeks, but I’ve got a good feeling.
“(…) my intellectual pseudo-nerd self.” That’s what I’m talking about!!!
When I grow up, I want to be just like you! Hahahahaha!
I’m so proud of you, my beautiful daughter!
Have a fantastic start at UniMelb!
You deserve that!
Haha maybe not negative, just honest. I don’t want to sound cliche but it’s refreshing, hearing someone that is “anti-social” (your words not mine) express so freely their fears. I wish you luck and look forward to future…expressions. 🙂
Oooh, I think I know one word in Portuguese- Christmas! I spent a few days in Macau and they had a huge light decoration with ‘Merry Christmas!’ on it, very pretty 😀 Lots of people have trouble making new friends, I do as well. But since we’re all going to be new, I figure it shouldn’t be too bad 😉
So, everyone, meet my mum. (Ron wasn’t kidding when he said our families were going to read everything we’d post here!)
And Jake, like-wise. It’s been an encouragement, to know that I’m not alone. Say hi if you see me during Week-O, even though you’ve no idea what I look like. 😛
Silvia, if it’s “Natal”, then you definitely know a Portuguese word! 😀
It’s going to be like 6th grade all over again. I’d moved to a new school and was completely. Freaked. Out. but when I got there, the school had never had another 6th grade class, so everyone was new, and by the end of Year 10 we were all a big family. (Not likely to happen at Melbourne Uni, though. Unless we become a “small” family, LOL!)
Hey Brenda! I’m sure all will be fine for you…:)
I feel you when you said about having millions of homesick fits…I had that too when I first moved away from home to do my Year 12…:(
Hahaha, nice to meet you Mrs (Ms?) Martin.
I don’t think my family even knows I’m posting XD
Yes, ‘Natal!” Hooray, I do know Portugese! 😀
Oh, I’m sure we’ll become a family of sorts… lost, scatterbrained, food-loving and introverted siblings. It’s going to be so much fun, I laugh just thinking about it!
A very unique family I’d say haha 😀