There is a Chinese proverb that says getting old happens faster than you think, so you need to learn or do everything as soon as you can. I have often heard adults saying that they were too old to do something. Fortunately I am young. I am young enough to start anything that I want to. So I want to give you suggestions of how we are to be aggressive.

First, don't hesitate to do something new. Of course doing something might require some risk. It might be so challenging that you lose something: such as money or even a relationship with someone special. I met some friends who left many good things such as good jobs or families, even sweet girlfriends or boyfriends in their countries in order to study in Canada. You should know sometime we need something fresh to keep ourselves animated and bright. They might have known known that. So they could come to Canada without hesitating.

Next, don't look back. Once you have started, you should not go back. It is a waste of time to go back and moreover going buck where you used to be will hurt your self-respect. I actually regretted coming to Canada again and I regretted the hard student life at BCIT. If I stayed at my University, which does not ask me to study hard, it might be much more comfortable. But I did not give up, and realized that looking back would never help my developing.

Finally, keep your head up. If you start thinking negatively from your perspective, everything will go badly. Everything will not go well in most situations. On the other hand, if you try to keep positive, your perspective will see everything going well. My student life was not good at the very beginning of this term. It was painful to keep studying when I could not see any progress. But I did keep going. Now, I really enjoy studying here at BCIT. Just keep going. Life is not always easy; it has its ups and downs. However, everything is sure to be fine after bad things, as long as your attitude is positive.

I have learned these things from my Canadian life; believe in yourself and keep going. To be young allows you to do anything you want to. That is a big advantage of youth. But at the same time, I need to clarify what is young. My father always told me that people get old when they lose their passion for living. So young does not mean just the youth of the body. In order to stay young and enjoy life, keep passion inside of you.

November 13, 2000