FINDING HOME WITHOUT A COMPASS

Making the decision to move to a new country at 18 isn’t something that happens so often. Well, I made that decision. But it wasn’t a smooth sail either. This is my story of how I ended up in Ghana for 8 years without my family. I know you are wondering why. I did too a couple of years ago.

I am a little girl (literally short) from a tiny country on the African map (Liberia). I am sure you know or just don’t know it exists. I grew up as an introvert on a rubber plantation. Everybody knew everybody’s business but not mine, though. I had dreams but felt isolated. I still do. Anyways, I graduated high school in 2016 from a private school I spent only 2 years in and headed straight to university after. That wasn’t the best decision I had made in my adolescent life. I always wanted to be in the tech field. But I did not know the difference between computer science and information technology. The scary part was I ended up in an electronic engineering program. Well, technically my mom thought all tech people were networking engineers. So that explains it.

The Move to Ghana

Long story short, I didn’t like it there. I knew I wasn’t going to continue, so I did my research and discovered my alma mater. So I told my parents I wanted to go and study in Ghana. It was perfect timing because my dad was going for his medical treatment there. So, I took on baby-sitting my cousins for extra cash to obtain my passport. I skipped school and went through the process quietly. I got my passport and presented it to my parents like a gift to them wrapped in a bow. That was when they realized I was serious. So we talked it out, and on August 26, 2017, I officially moved to Ghana at age 18, almost 19.

The Degree

I didn’t go to university right away after my move. I took up a professional diploma program in software engineering to make little me proud. COVID happened. So, my transition after my diploma program slowed down. In 2020, I got admission to study. Classes started online, and later in 2021, after lockdown, everything changed. We started attending lectures in person, I moved into my first student apartment, and I got my first full-time job as a digital marketing trainer because I could not shut up about digital marketing. That was when I realized I had fully immersed myself in the culture of Ghana and blended well with locals, maybe.

It never stopped. Life got easier, and things started to feel aligned. I was doing well in my courses and showing up at work. Then 2022 happened. I lost my grandma. It got difficult to accept that she was gone. This loss started reflecting in my academic performance. I snapped out of it because I remembered Grandma had always been a driving force in my journey. So, I persevered and recovered my grades in my third year. Earlier that year, I had moved into a bigger apartment.

The Work

In 2023, I got hired by my university as a digital marketing manager and worked there for a year. This was also my final year in university. My life was truly all over the place. I had had plans of getting all A’s, which didn’t happen because a faculty member decided to give me a B+. I had to build a full-stack web application from scratch and write a project report on it and work full time. I had sleepless nights. I had the worst irregular period.

The last week before my project defense, I pulled multiple all-nighters every night to get everything right. The perfectionist in me couldn’t rest until it was all over. I went from being a skinny penono (an inside joke) to someone who could put on weight (it never happened before). I was shocked. It was a lot, but I managed to do it all and came out on top. I decided to take a break from everything so I completed school and decided not to renew my contract. Though I walked away, I had two job offers on the table but refused to take any.

I wanted to experience a job search since I hadn’t had that experience. So, I built a system and self-evaluated, worked on what was needed to be worked on, and got hired as a digital marketing lead all under 30 days. The day I got my employment agreement, I was feeling down. I had told myself I wasn’t going to check any notification until I was done with my research session. After I picked up my phone, there it was: “You have been hired.” I know it was God’s way of comforting me in a stressed state. I took up 3 interviews from 3 different companies and businesses. The one I felt reluctant to attend was the one that hired me.

This was at the end of 2024. Early 2025, I went for my graduation ceremony, took a family trip to Lomé, Togo, and decided to keep going.

The Realization

Ghana felt like home. It still does. I actually plan to relocate there permanently. It gave me opportunities, friendships, family, and memories I cherish forever. But I needed to step out of the protective bubble it provided me for 8 years. Yes, if you are wondering, I left Ghana. I have to take a risk bigger than me, and I couldn’t do it in my comfort zone. So I came back home to Liberia to reset for this next chapter of my life. If you are wondering what this risk is, check out the next blog post.

Thank you for sharing this journey with me. When life gives you lemons, pick more lemons and sell them, lol.

Until next read, XO