Despite growing up in America, I had nobody in my house who knew English. I had already learned to speak my native language when I was in Cambodia. Khmer was all I spoke until I was 5 because my mom only knew Khmer. I had no access to everyday technology that could’ve helped me learn the language because we couldn’t afford those things. By the time I attended school, I had no idea what people were saying to me. I had to adapt on my own to the foreign language. I woke up everyday at daycare dreading going to school. I would cry everyday for my mom because I barely ever saw her. She was always working and I was always scared and lonely. I would constantly cry until I was so tired that I would fall asleep at school. My teacher somehow understood what I was feeling so she let me off the hook. Other teachers weren’t so understanding. They whispered things about me to each other with disgusted facial expressions. When students bullied me, I couldn’t defend myself because I didn’t know how to speak English. Somehow, I would usually get in trouble for what they did. I had to endure all this alone since I had nobody to talk to who would understand me. I somehow managed to grasp the language within half a year of starting school. I became one of the top students in reading, writing, and math by the time I got to first grade. I stayed in the top ranks throughout my schooling career. I took multiple AP classes and transferred the credits to Umass Amherst.
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