On December 31, 2017, I left the Philippines and travelled to Canada. I was very happy since visiting Canada has been one of my greatest desires.\n\nUpon arrival at the Quebec City airport, I waited for my luggage to come out on the conveyor, but I could not find it. I was terrified since my clothes and some of the food that I had brought from my country were inside my bags.\n\n I filled out the lost luggage report form given by the airport personnel and said I would just check on their website to monitor any updates regarding my lost luggage.\n\nMoving forward, I asked the receptionist on duty where the school was I was to be going to and presented my letter of acceptance. As he looked at the paper that I handed him, he said, \u201CSorry, but you are in the wrong place.\\" I said, \u201CWhat? But this is Quebec.\u201D He said, \u201CYou are in Quebec City approximately 268 km away from Montreal\u201D.\n\nHe advised me to take a plane again at a cost of $500 but I refused because the fare was expensive. As a result, he looked for a bus route from Quebec City to Montreal. \n\nAfter he figured it out, he handed me a hand-written piece of paper with the name of the bus and corresponding fare. He even wrote the lists of possible hotels in Montreal with their price. In short, the receptionist was a Good Samaritan.\n\nWhen I arrived at the bus terminal in Quebec City, I was surprised there was only one bus there. It was so cold that night (-25 degrees). As I was getting on the bus, the driver asked for my bus pass. I said, \u201CI do not have bus pass because I just arrived at the airport and I did not know about bus passes\u201D. \n\nThe driver insisted that I should have a bus pass. I asked him if I could just pay him with my money but he refused to accept, as they are not allowed to receive any cash.\n\nHe told me to wait until the cashier opened. I insisted I could not wait for the cashier because it was 3 am and the cashier would only open at 5 am. I could not survive for two hours outside the terminal. I said to him, \\"I will die outside if you will not let me get on the bus\\".\n\n Finally, after a long conversation with the driver, he allowed me to get on the bus going to the Montreal bus terminal.\n\n While I was inside the bus. I cannot remember how many times I said: \u201CThank you, Lord!\u201D I was almost crying but I forced myself not to. I was hungry, I had a headache, and I did not know how many meals I had missed due to a long connecting flight. \n\nI was looking through my shoulder bag for some food. Luckily, I still had one loaf of bread. While eating, I looked outside the window, watching the roads and the views of Quebec. I felt so empty and asked myself \u201CWhere am I now?\u201D.\n\nI reminisced about my long travel. From the strict entry at immigration to the delayed luggage to the wrong city I was in, and finally, the bus driver who did not want me to get on the bus because I had no bus pass.\n\nWhen I arrived in Montreal, the driver accompanied me to go to the cashier and handed him my ticket.\n\n While in the Montreal bus terminal, I connected to the terminal internet trying to book any hotel because I needed to have a hotel before the night came. Montreal is very different from the Philippines we cannot sleep in the terminal here. \n\nI started to panic because I was having a hard time booking a hotel. Where could I sleep? I kept my focus until I found one apartment, which did not need a Master Card, and they accepted cash on arrival.\n\n I took a taxi to the apartment. When I got there, I was hesitant because my expectations were very different from the reality. I walked inside in the first door and another door faced me. \n\nThe landlord was not there when I arrived, and I sat down on the stairs and wanted to cry because I felt so helpless, I could not text or call, I could not use the internet. I looked outside view and it was so silent. I saw just a few people on the street, and it looked like a ghost town.\n\nI said to myself \u201CIs it my dream? \u201CIs this what I want?\u201D An hour later, a woman arrived and I told her that I was a guest and I had booked my reservation online. She let me in and felt so thankful and warmer inside. \n\nI waited for another 2 hours for the landlord I could not send a message since I didn't have the internet. At 2 p.m., the landlord arrived. The happiness and hope I felt that moment was unimaginable.\n\nAs the night came, I was in my room, I released my emotions, I cried to my pillow for all I had experienced along my way. What I experienced during my travels was not easy. \n\nI was so thankful that during the hardest time, God was with me. He was with me during those times that I was about to surrender, He was with me and enlightened me not to panic and stay focus instead.\n\nAs the saying goes, it may be stormy now, but it never rains forever.

I am 29 years of age, an international student from the Philippines, taking Administrative Professional (AP) at West Island Career Centre under the jurisdiction of Lester B. Pearson School Board. From a young age, I have been struggling when it comes to education. My parents did not have enough financial resources to finance my studies. At the age of 10, I started helping my parents. I washed my Aunt's clothes just to get money for allowance. When I reached high school, I did a lot of work like cleaning my Uncle's backyard, and washing my relatives' clothes. I finished my high school while working since my father was a farmer and my mother a housewife. Their earnings were not enough to finance our school needs and were intended only for our food. We are six children in the family and that is why my parents worked hard for our survival. After I finished my high school, I worked as a part-time service crew in Jollibee Tagbilaran, after one year of working in the food chain, I enrolled in Holy Name University and got a scholarship. I was accepted as a janitorial working scholar. Every day from 5-7 a.m., I cleaned the school campus, at 7:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. I had my academic classes, and from 5:00-10 p.m. I had night work. After 5 years of going to school, I finally got my Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a major in Human Resources Development Management. Despite the hardships in life I still survived the battle. Three days after my graduation, I started applying for work for me to earn money to help my parents as well as my siblings. Luckily, I got hired as a Manager Trainee in Island City Mall. After 2 months, I got promoted to a Purchasing Officer. One year after, I got hired as a Manager in McDonald's Bohol, Philippines. Life has been so good to me. I got an offer from a company as a Head Coordinator and I grabbed the opportunity this enabled me to help my family more in terms of financial needs. I applied for a student visa in Canada, even though I did not have enough financial resources. I am the kind of person with a high belief that in every problem there is a solution and God will provide to those who believe in himself. Luckily my student visa was approved. I landed in Canada last January 1, 2018. After 2 weeks I got hired and presently I am working at McDonald's during weekends. From 8:30-3:30 p.m. Monday-Friday, I have my academic classes. From 5:00-7:00 p.m., I have my French class at EMULCQ École de Francisation. During Saturday and Sunday, I work at McDonald's. Despite my busy schedule, I still manage to be an active student at school in every activity. In fact, I was invited to attend the “Adult Learner's Gala” initiated by the school and got an award for my hard work, dedication and passion. The event was attended by selected students, school administrators and staff. I also was a volunteer at school during the recent “Open House”; it was an event where prospective students came to the centre to learn about the programs offered by the school. I was also one of the presenters during the “Adult Learner's Talent show” for Adult Learner`s Week at school which was held in April 2018. Recently, I was appointed as a student representative for the School's Governing Board and now I am an official member. I was worried because the school was telling me that I need to pay half of my tuition or else I will be sent back to my country. I made a request letter and addressed to the president of the international department. Luckily, they approved my request and allowed me to pay my tuition in four installments. I felt blessed that time and said to myself that there is no harm in trying. My problems do not end there because my Certificat d'acceptation du Quebec pour etudes (CAQ) and Student visa will be expired on December 30, 2018. Therefore, I gathered all the necessary documents and applied for the extension. After a couple of months of waiting for the result, I received the approval of my CAQ and student visa extension, which allows me to continue my studies until April 2019 and I can have my open work permit after course done. I also applied for the McDonald's scholarship writing essay contest and luckily, I got selected and won a prize amounting to $ 750, which was a big help for me as I still have the balance to pay for my tuition. I was trying to search the internet for writing essay contest and I found this Biopage.com. I always take a chance, and think positive. Sometimes it is not about winning, it is about trying.