A year and a half ago, in the summer of 2024, I made a decision that changed my life. This decision was to go completely out of my comfort zone and study abroad for two months in São Paulo, Brazil.
When I arrived in Brazil, it was my first time living in another country for an extended period of time. I was unfamiliar with the customs, the way things worked and how to change my phone service, and I was even nervous to go to the local bakery and order some pão de quiejo.
Although I was extremely nervous leading up to this experience, and had a rough start when I first arrived (my friend and I spent our first morning in the local public hospital), there was a friendly face who was there from the start – one that I will always remember. That was my roommate, Sabrina.
Sabrina, probably without even realizing it, absolutely changed my experience in São Paulo for the better. When my Uber from the hospital arrived at our apartment, she greeted me with such kindness and the biggest smile.
She, along with my other Brazilian roommate, showed me and the other Americans around our new neighborhood in the city, pointing out the best spots to grab a bite to eat and where to go grocery shopping.
What really made the difference, however, were the almost nightly conversations that the two of us shared. Although she originally greeted me in English, she quickly switched to her role of “Brazilian roommate” and only conversed with me in Portuguese.
Each night we covered a new topic: from taxes to shopping to things to do on Avenida Paulista (the “Times Square” of São Paulo). She taught me new words, phrases and even pronunciations in Portuguese. Because of Sabrina, I learned that the way Brazilians pronounce the word “churros” is extraordinarily different from how it is pronounced in both Spanish and English.
Sabrina always encouraged me to try new things. Because of her, I consistently did things that pushed my limits and encouraged me to get out of my comfort zone – whether it be through exploring a new neighborhood or visiting a fun museum.
She was always there when I needed a friend, someone to rant to, and even someone to confide in. Together, we got to bond about homesickness, Taylor Swift, men and dating, language learning, travel, our hopes and dreams for the future and so much more. We connected over both the similarities and differences in our lives, and shared this comfort when things started to feel too unfamiliar.
Sabrina showed me how to fully immerse myself and become comfortable in myself in a new culture while abroad. She taught me the importance of putting myself out there in situations that may seem uncomfortable at first, and trying something new. She helped me realize the importance of failure, and how it is necessary to mess up in order to learn and improve at anything.
Even now, as she is writing her thesis and I am writing mine, she has been a great friend to have by my side. We’ve gotten to share stories about our research and writing process, and she has shared some great tips about beating procrastination in the process.
Sabrina was the first person to encourage me to leave the comfort of who I used to be to grow into the person I am today, and for that, I will be forever grateful.
Thanks to her and the experience I had in Brazil, I now do things that scare me every day, and I make sure to fail often – so that I can continue to grow as a person and learn more about the world around me instead of hiding away in the comfortability of the familiar things.