Everything happens for a reason – Finding my place in China

I’m a big believer that things happen for a reason and that things will always work out in the end. As you can guess from the photo, that is exactly what happened to me! You might still remember how I wrote being down last Autumn, having no motivation for studying and parting ways with my boyfriend.

During the last few years I have noticed that life always seem to through something new my way when I’m needing a change for the most. After going through the most terrible break up back in 2009 (Chinese guy with Finnish citizenship) I got a study exchange placement from Guangzhou University and moved to China in 2010. The whole world, well the whole China at least, was in my reach.

During my years in China I learned a lot, one of the things being taking charge of my own happiness. That let me to make the hard decision to break up with my boyfriend.

But as I believed, that was the beginning for a new life for me. I had grown up a lot during the first three years in China and what I wanted came clearer and clearer all the time. I’m not someone who settles for something, but someone who reaches her dreams and wants it all.

Last December, thanks to a good Japanese friend, I met A Nan. A local Guangzhounese, already graduated, working and doing another degree on his free-time. We noticed that we had a lot to talk about, connection that is hard to put into words. During that very same month he invited me to join his trip to Heng Mountain.

Since December I have been extremely happy and have gotten so much more to my life I could have ever asked for. I now live with his family which includes parents and little sister and her boyfriend, the two of them are marrying soon and moving to their own home next month. Besides my cat Lucy, I have adopted two more cats, Small White and Small Yellow. Both my boyfriend’s dad and little sister’s boyfriend have turtles. I have gotten so many new family members!

Living abroad far away from your family members isn’t always easy, but now I have a new family here in Guangzhou which makes my life some much richer than it have ever been. I have celebrated Chinese festivals, accompanied family members to furniture shopping and enjoyed family dinners every night.

I’m sure there are some curious readers out there with questions, but first I also have some questions for you too: Have you lived with a Chinese family yourself? Or how does it feel like to be part of your Chinese better half’s family?