We are continuously changing as humans. Environments and people have a big influence on us and how we grow. Change is always good, it shows you have grown over time. There are a few things I stop or adapted while living in South Africa.
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More open-minded
I see things from a different perspective now. I got to learn so much in all different aspects of my life. You don’t really know a lot till you get to experience or see things for yourself. I’ve gotten to learn about other cultures and understood why they do things the way they do. I’ve become a better person because of my experiences.
Trying out new dishes
I’m prone to allergies and avoided trying a new food for the first time. I just stick to what I know and was closed off to new foods. To make it worse I’m a picky eater as well and this totally closes me off from trying new dishes. But while in South Africa, I got more open to trying new food and actually liking it. The food I tried there is now one of my favorites currently. Being in South Africa really help me get out of my comfort zone.
Hustle Culture
In Namibia, most people are very comfortable and everything moves at a slow pace, but in South Africa mostly Johannesburg everything is fast. If you are not awake, life will pass you by. Everyone is always busy making money. People, there are more focused on how can they make money and how can they increase the money they already have.
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You get to find the most creative and hard-working people in Johannesburg. This environment and people influence me to become more like them. It made me more entrepreneurial, I had started a business prior to moving to South Africa but while there I got pushed more to start others and make them profitable. Being in Johannesburg pushes you to have multiple streams of income. People are not relaxed or comfortable in their life, they push and are always looking for new opportunities.
Being Grateful
I got to appreciate my life and upbringing more when I moved to South Africa. I got to see how people really suffer on a daily basis and things I normally complain about are so insignificant compared to the things they go through.
I’m also so grateful to just still be alive, living in Johannesburg is not the easiest thing. I’ve almost been kidnapped and got robbed at gunpoint. In both instances, I could have lost my life but so grateful to just be on the side of the living.
Moving all alone as a foreign young female was not the easiest but I survived and was grateful for God’s grace and protection over my life.
Independence
I became independent so early on in my life when I moved. Everything was on me, I was all alone in a foreign country. There was no one I could depend on or that could guide me through things. Living alone helps you get independent, you end up making all decisions and you live through trial and error. You get to learn a lot on your own.
It’s not the same as living at home with your parents and them being responsible for almost everything. You don’t have that comfort of security when being hundreds of miles away from home.
