A Korean born in Brazil in Poland :)

So, one might ask how is it to be born in Brazil while being Korean? And most important, why come to Poland?!!!

I was born in Brazil and my parents are Korean so during the time I spent at home I had Korean education but outside the home, I had Brazilian culture and I must say it was very confusing because it is two very distinct cultures. However, I feel blessed because I got to grow up with two cultures that are somewhat opposites and with time, I got to learn how to filter the good parts of them.

After high school, I went to college and in my senior year, I decided to go to NYC to chase what I thought was my dream: to work as an investment analyst in Wall Street. I worked as a bartender and I got enough money to go to college to finish my studies. Everything was going well until I started to have panic attack crises and then I came back to my home. I was still pursuing to become a well-stablished investor when my crisis aggravated to the point that I had to stop everything and it was at this moment that I’ve realized that all along this wasn’t my dream…

This experience led me to realize that I had to embrace what I truly am and to follow what I truly love: music. I led myself to believe that to be accepted and recognized, I had to achieve a certain amount of status and money when all I did was neglect my true self. I’ve always aspired to be a musician.

So I’ve dropped everything and started to focus on my passion. I got a scholarship in a music school and for 2 years I focused and studied hard and guess what? I stopped having panic attacks! I must confess that it wasn’t an easy decision because it involves changing my lifestyle, I had to let go of lots of things but in exchange, I’ve gained my freedom – more than that, I’ve embraced who I was.

Ok, but how the heck did I end up in Poland, you must be asking.

Well, after my studies which I didn’t complete, I’ve composed my songs and I was planning to go to London when my brother invited me to visit him in Krakow. He lives and works in Krakow and since I’ve never been to Poland, which for me it was an unthinkable destination, I thought that it would be an awesome and at the same time a frightening experience.

Then after one month in Krakow, I was feeling uneasy and I was ready to get to my original destination when I got an opportunity to come to Warsaw to teach English. At first, I rejected the idea but something was telling me to go, to take the left turn again, to embrace the unknown.

Everything has been so unexpected since the moment I made up my mind to reset my life and what I’ve learned is that taking the “left turns” enriches my life with experiences that will make me who I am and what I become.

Trying to rush things won’t lead me to anywhere and taking my time to get to know and meet different people, to learn, to teach, to laugh, to cry; all this is what makes life… well, life!