2025/Shan-

Once there was a girl named Shan. She had to go to a country named Korea, but she made true friends in the Philippines. She didn’t want to leave her friends named Collin, Jenny, and Rizzabelle, but she wanted to go to Korea SOOOOOOOOO BAD to explore new things! She had to leave her friends, so she had a long flight.

Her mom said, “Are you okay?” but Shan said, “Yeah… it’s just hard to leave your friends in your country and get to make more and more. But what if they forget about me?” Shan said.

But Shan’s mom said, “No, they will not forget about you. At least you get to make more and more and more—I promise,” Shan’s mom said.

And when Shan went to school, she was really nervous if nobody would like her. But when she went into the gate… SHE MADE NEW FRIENDS!!! And she was really happy but sad, because she still missed her friends—and they were true friends. Their names were Penelope (short for Penny), Lana Elago, Rasha Serrano, and Bella Bartie…

So usually, you leave your friends in your country and make more friends in another country. “That's sad, I know… but you get used to it sometimes. But it’s sad, Mom.”

And her mom said, “That’s a good thing, because you get to meet more. It’s because that’s the way life goes, Shan.”

And Shan believed her mom… and walked through the door with her new friends.