Living without your parents is an extremely difficult experience, and I never want to go through it again. Although I lived without them for only 3 weeks, it felt like an eternity. I felt like a part of myself was missing, and I would think about them every single day. My parents had to go for pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia which means they would be going for three weeks. Occasionally I would sleep over at my friend's house but I had never been away from them for this long.This was the most I would have ever been without them. Since both of my parents were leaving, I had to stay at my cousin's house for 3 weeks. Although this was in September of 2015, I still remember it like it was yesterday.

Even though I had been mentally preparing for them to be away, nothing could have prepared me for the moment they left. I remember standing upon the threshold of my aunt's house gazing at the black car disappear down the street as my eyes slowly filled with tears. I had never been separated from parents for more than a couple days, and now I had to live without them for almost a month. I was scared and missed them already. My aunt tried to take our minds off our parents by making us dinner and putting on a movie, but I found myself listlessly staring at the bright vivid images on the screen bounce around.
   

The next couple of weeks were the longest two weeks of my life. Sometimes, I would cry for no reason or just feel out of place. My brothers and I were living with our cousins, and although they were still family, we felt like we were intruding on their lives and a burden upon them. We just wanted to live in our own home and see our parents again. My parents would periodically check in with us but they couldn't talk for long because there was a really bad reception in the remote area in which they were camped for the pilgrimage rites.
  

After three weeks, our parents came back. When we went to pick them up from the airport, my heart was beating out of my chest and I was ecstatic. When I saw them coming out of arrivals looking tired and jetlagged, I didn't care who was watching. I ran the fastest I could and jumped into my parent's arms. My eyes streaming with tears of joy, I held on so tight and wouldn't let go. On the way back from the airport, I chatted non-stop, telling my parents all that had happened to me for the past month.
 

Even though the experience of living without my parents was really hard and overwhelming, I learned that I can live without them and be an independent person. I know that I may have to live without them in the future and even though the prospect of that scares me,  at least now I know I can. I understand that everything happens for a reason and I am glad that I had to go through that. I think it was a learning experience for my brothers and I. Going through difficult experiences shapes who you are as a person. Without any trials or tribulations, your character is never tested. Only in traumatic experiences, your true personality shines and it is up to us to thrive and become better people day by day. It is the trials in life that bring out who you really are. As Winston Churchill says, “Difficulties mastered are opportunities won.”