My Second Home

I grew up in a primarily Asian community in the sunny state of California. Approximately 90% of my classmates were “ABC’s” like me—second-generation Asian descendants who were born and raised in America. As most people know, Asian families usually place enormous emphasis on academics. As a result, the academic competition in my community was fierce. Everyone was aiming to get into the most prestigious universities, but space was limited. To not lag behind in the competition, my parents enrolled me in an impressive amount of extracurriculars. I took Chinese class, piano class, writing class, swim class, dance class, and art class. I also played flute in the school band. On top of all those classes, I also went to afterschool programs every day, enrichment classes every weekend, and summer school every summer break. In other words, my schedule was packed. To be honest though, I actually enjoyed taking most of these classes because my parents never put any pressure on me to actually accomplish anything.

However, everything changed once I got to high school. High school was when the real academic competition began. Everything suddenly became serious because all of our grades, our credits, and our extracurriculars would be recorded on our resumes. As a result, everyone began to compete over everything from SAT scores to the amount of volunteer hours completed. At a school full of prestigious straight-A students, the only way to differentiate ourselves was to do something impressive that made us stand out from the crowd.

This created a problem. Something felt different. The environment was not as friendly and carefree as it had been in middle school. There was an unspoken fear in the air that other people were doing better. There was jealousy when other people got better grades. People were closing up. I tried to not think about it too much, but eventually, it started to affect me personally.

A while into high school, I noticed that one of my closest friends, whom I’d known since second grade, had slowly begun to distance herself from me. We used to call and text each other frequently. However, after we got to high school, it was like an invisible barrier suddenly formed between us. We barely spoke to each other anymore, especially about anything school-related. Of course, I understood that competition was stiff, but as friends, I thought we wouldn’t have such an issue. Was our friendship worth nothing?

It was then that I realized I had to step up my game. I saw that most people were part of a sport, so I decided to join track and field. I chose to take Spanish as a language course so I would have the advantage of knowing three languages instead of just two. I tried to enroll in as many honors and AP courses as I could while maintaining a 4.0 GPA. I joined clubs and looked for other activities that could add to my resume. And my last line of defense? I set up my barriers so other people couldn’t see my weaknesses. The pressure was on. Life was stressful. And the worst part? I couldn’t talk about it with my peers. I had to keep my game up, but let’s be honest—with so many things going on, it was hard to stay on top of everything.

Thankfully, it was at this time, during my sophomore year of high school, that I transferred to Fei Tian Academy of the Arts. I’d grown up watching Shen Yun Performing Arts, and deep down, I’d always dreamed of being a dancer in the company. I loved the beginner Chinese dance classes that I took every week, so I finally decided to apply to Fei Tian, one of the few art schools in the country that professionally taught classical Chinese dance. I had sent in my application without much expectation, but to my great surprise, Fei Tian Academy accepted me. Just like that, my sophomore year on the West Coast was cut short, and I made my way across the country to continue my high school path. Life could not be any more different.

I grew up in the same, small neighborhood for most of my childhood, so I followed my friends from elementary to middle school, all the way up to high school. Therefore, this experience of changing schools was completely new to me. We all remember our infamous first day, a day filled with anticipation, worry, and dread. The day we got a taste of what our futures would hold. On my first day, one of my new classmates brought me to the dorms to put down my things and change into dance attire. It was only after I looked in the mirror that I realized the legs of my old dance pants were hanging around my ankles. I had outgrown them. I awkwardly looked at my classmate and said, “Oh dear, my pants look a little weird.” Instead of smirking or making fun of me, she responded, “Really? I think they look fine.” Now that I look back, I am so thankful that she used positive words to encourage me on that awkward first day. Even though I’m sure I looked pretty odd, she did not make fun of me, and instead tried to help me fit in.

Afterwards, she brought me to the cafeteria, and we sat down to lunch at a table with my other new classmates. They all welcomed me with big smiles and began introducing themselves. I left the cafeteria not remembering a single name, but clearly remembering the warmth that they brought me.

It took a while to get accustomed to my new life at an arts school instead of a regular high school, but there always seemed to be a person offering a helping hand whenever I needed one. When I didn’t know how to write something in Chinese for my essay, one classmate offered to help me translate from English. When I was struggling with a technique, someone would offer tips on how I could do it better. When I couldn’t remember the class routines, my classmates offered to teach me until I completely memorized the movements. I didn’t need to worry about fitting in because everyone already included me as one of their own.

I also noticed there was no talking behind other people’s backs about how good or bad someone was at dance or academics. Instead, everyone openly discussed what they learned and helped each other out when they saw other people struggling. There was no jealousy when someone accomplished a new technique; instead, everyone would run over and give that person a bear hug because they truly felt happy for her breakthrough. There was no gossip about how many followers someone had on Facebook or Instagram; rather, everyone put all their focus on improving their art. There was no bullying or making fun of others—only encouragement. And there were no alcohol or drug problems, at all.

I believe what makes Fei Tian Academy different is the fundamental principles that the school is founded upon. Fei Tian is an institution with a religious affiliation to the spiritual disciple of Falun Dafa. Falun Dafa teaches people to follow the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance. I visibly saw how these principles made a difference in this school, especially in comparison to what I experienced at my previous school. At Fei Tian, no one was in it for just themselves. Everyone was in it for everybody else. When I felt stressed or sad, I could always find someone to talk with to alleviate mental pressure. They would help me as if the problem were their own. Slowly, I tore down the barriers that I had put up so long ago.

Now that I look back, I believe I understand why so many high schools suffer from high rates of depression, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, and suicide. The National Center for Drug Abuse Statistics reports that 12.9% of 12th graders use marijuana daily. There is a 32.6% illegal marijuana usership among college students. Why are drug abuse levels especially high among high schoolers and college students? I believe this statistic is tied to the high levels of mental pressure students experience during those years. On one hand, there’s academic stress and the pressure of maintaining good grades. On the other hand, there’s the social stress, the peer pressure and desire to fit in that keep everyone on their toes and phones. Trends change in the blink of an eye, and students need to stay on top of them to be “cool.” With no ways to relieve such large amounts of stress, students can easily become depressed and may use alcohol or drugs to lose themselves and temporarily numb their worries. In extreme conditions, they may even commit suicide.

As a student who has witnessed firsthand how different the academic experience can be in different school environments, I am grateful to have had the chance to study at such a special campus. The positive and healthy environment at Fei Tian Academy fosters students who excel in academics and dance and, more importantly, try to be good people. Everyone I know uses the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance to guide their conduct. They are willing to put others before themselves.

In such an environment, I’ve found people who care for me and treat me like family. I have no siblings, but here at Fei Tian Academy, I suddenly found myself a whole bunch of sisters. Fei Tian has become what I now call my second home.