According to a humor website called cracked.com, there are major side effects that “everyone” will go through when moving to a new country.
- You will hate everything and everyone there at first
- You’ll miss stuff you never even cared about
- You will get super patriotic
- Every other immigrant you meet feels like a soulmate
- All these things will happen in reverse if you move home
But let’s look at these statements more closely and see how true they really are. First, “You will hate everything and everyone there at first”. This statement is false. Each individual will most likely experience something completely different from another based on the culture they are in, how they are exposed to that culture, and their mindset going into that culture.
In Japan, the idea of children living overseas is not universally accepted. These children are called kikokushijo meaning “returnee children”. Leaving their passport country will help them to broaden their views on the world, on business, on culture. For these children, hating everything and everyone will probably not happen until they return home and are looked at differently, like they don’t belong. This is a bigger issue to be looked at than hating the location someone is moving to.The article also talks about missing stuff you never even cared about. This proves as true as the quote, “you never know what you’ve got until it’s gone”. Leaving any place that you have made into your home can be hard and people will hold on to whatever they can, whether it’s right away or later down the road.
With getting “super patriotic”, this can be true for a military brat, which is defined as the child of a parent serving full-time in the military. Mary Edwards Wertsch, expert on the subculture of American military 
brats, says, “…military brats have such values as idealism, antiracism, loyalty, patriotism and honesty.” Even though they could be stationed in a different part of the world than their passport country, most military brats are immersed in the military culture rather than the country’s culture they may be living in. This can create a possible feeling of patriotism as the third statement suggests.
brats, says, “…military brats have such values as idealism, antiracism, loyalty, patriotism and honesty.” Even though they could be stationed in a different part of the world than their passport country, most military brats are immersed in the military culture rather than the country’s culture they may be living in. This can create a possible feeling of patriotism as the third statement suggests.“Every immigrant you meet feels like a soulmate” could hold true if the word ‘immigrant’ was better defined. A person coming from England will connect easier with another person coming from England, true. However, a person coming from Peru will not see the person coming from England as a soulmate per say unless they have similar experiences within their travels. Each individual will connect with those who have these similar experiences.
Maybe these events will happen in the order they are listed above. Then again, maybe they will happen in reverse, in a different order, or not at all. Again, each individual’s experiences will be different based on the culture they move into, how well they get to know that culture around them, and what their mindset may be throughout their adventure.
