To Hong Kong, With All My Heart: For the Friends

By Zahra Sachikonye, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

‘You will never be completely at home again, because part of your heart will always be elsewhere. That is the price you pay for the richness of loving and knowing people in more than one place’ (Miriam Adeney)

‘It’s the people’, we say in unison. I have this friend who I met on exchange and when people ask us about any trip, or our time in Hong Kong, this is always our reply. It’s true. Whilst the place itself can change someone, most of my favourite memories of my time abroad have a face attached to them. So this is my thank you letter, for the friends I made along the way.

It’s the little things

Before coming to Hong Kong, I had already made a drastic move across the world from Zimbabwe to the UK. I can confirm that leaving the people you love never gets easier. I am still processing the loss of everyday moments in Hong Kong.

We always think the big moments will be most unforgettable, the hikes, trips or parties. But it’s the everyday rhythm of life together that I miss the most. Sitting in our dorms laughing at absolutely nothing for a concerningly long time. Pouring our hearts out sitting at the harbour (there’s something about the air at the harbour that needs to be studied). Simply taking the MTR together or having dinner at our favourite spots (shoutout Smithfields!). The luxury of having a bubble tea at Bafang with a friend whenever you wanted to. Talking about all the things we want to do, food we want to try, all the places we want to see before time runs out. Then time ran out.

If you know, you know

Speaking to a friend recently, I realised that exchange is like a Netflix series that only you and the people around you at the time were cast in. It had character development arcs, plot twists and all the things that make a show exciting. So much lore. And although we shared parts of the show through social media with friends and family back home, unless you were part of the cast, you can’t really understand the plot and subtext. Now we’re back in our real lives trying to explain a story that meant everything, but no one else gets it. You just had to be there. I like to think that’s beautiful; we have this time together that is fully ours.

Meeting Myself

I met so many versions of myself in the people I spoke to. Literally. I asked some people I met, ‘How would you describe me?’ And I was stunned by what they said: spontaneous, fun, younger-sibling energy (ouch?). I had never used those words for myself before, yet there I was living them. The people I met reflected me back to myself in ways I’d never seen before.

The people I met also reflected who I wanted to be. Their kindness reminded me of the goodness of the world. Their humour reminded me of the true joy of not taking yourself too seriously. Above all it was their courage, in being themselves and loving boldly, that made me braver, too.

We were all finding ourselves in each other but also giving pieces of our hearts away in the process. So we somehow leave our exchange more whole but perhaps slightly broken.

I will be proud to carry a piece of each of the people I met on exchange, as a quiet reminder of the time we shared and the person I hope to become.

To Hong Kong, with all my heart, Thank You for the Friends.

Xoxo

Zahra