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I was sitting underneath a mango tree when I decided to leave Ghana for boarding school. I had decided that I had become overly comfortable in my everyday lifestyle, and that in order for me to grow I needed to leave.
My parents were characteristically supportive and the next thing I know: it was a Sunday, I was unpacked and I was colder than I had ever been. The transition from Accra in Ghana to the UK was indescribable in that, some things were the same; the things I learnt in school, the language I spoke and the amount of work I received. Although, everything was different, I had never gone to an all-girls school, I had never gone to school and not seen my parents after school, I had to wear these itchy tights that I had never worn before and one thing was certain…it rained all the time !!
However, days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, months turned into years and now I am in Year 12 and I can certainly say that…mango trees are the best places to make decisions!!
I went from not joining any activities to being the Deputy Head Girl of Boarding and racing from one activity to another. I was afraid I would not meet anyone I could relate to and now I have friends from all over the world.
One thing is true though; boarding school is a change, but not a negative one. It is terrifying, but most amazing things in life start out that way. I could never bring myself to regret the decision to leave home, as this decision has brought me straight into the arms of some of my greatest opportunities and some of my dearest friends.
These past three years of boarding have changed me: I am more independent, I wear a lot more tights than I ever did before, but I love a lot more things than I did before coming.
Things and people that form a different sort of ‘home’ in my heart…
Myrtle-Cleona – a Boarder at The Royal Masonic School for Girls