As a foreign exchange student, senior David Ryu wants to share his experiences during the summer, and how moving to the US has shaped his dreams. Being fluent in two languages, Ryu also added a few paragraphs of his first language.

Many students decided to do something meaningful during summer vacation and I was one of them. I decided to go to the Philippines and serve as a Non-governmental Organization (NGO) volunteer through the summer.

I was in the Philippines as a volunteer from June 21-27. I helped paint a new building, and visited different places to support the needs of people. The living conditions for the people living there were totally different because they could not even have air conditioning or afford to buy food daily. Although staying in the hottest and most humid place was really challenging, I learned a lot of things from the people living there.

I could not believe how different living conditions are even though we are all on the same planet. I could not even imagine that kind of situation in South Korea or the US. Because of that experience, I was able to take a step forward to my real dream. I could gain happiness just through that experience that I could be someone who brings strength to other people.

I must think about what I want to do as a dream job, through my long journey. Even if my country, South Korea, is not a poor country anymore, there still exists many poor countries similar to the old South Korea. My dream has become a more realistic one since I have seen more countries and met more people. This volunteer service has absolutely made me closer to my dream and clearer about who I really want to be. I will attempt to approach people with my heart, and I will live for everyone, not for myself, until all human beings have happiness.

Since I have come to the US, I have met lots of people who have different dreams. Hearing everyone’s goals have made my dreams bigger. So the dream I dream becomes a reality as I attempt to put these ideas into action.

많은 나라들을 보면서 내가 해야할일이 무엇인가라고 생각해보았다. 한국과 미국은 이제 가난한 나라는 아니다. 우리의 도움 없이도 스스로 살아갈수 있는 여건과 환경이 마련되어있다. 그것이 내가 한국과 미국에있으면서 느낀점이다. 하지만

같은 지구 아래에서 이렇게 다른 조건을 가지고 태어난 사람이 있다라는 사실에 놀랐다. 하지만 그런 사람들을 돕는 일을 하고 싶었던 나였기 때문에 이번 자원봉사를 통해서 나의 꿈에 한발자국 더 다가갈수 있었던것 같아 행복했다. 그저 아무것도 신경쓰지 않은채 누군가에게 내가 정말 힘이 될수 있구나라는 생각하나에 그저 행복했다.

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For more opinions, read the Oct. 15, Student reflects on Government Shutdown’s impact (PODCAST).