I came to the United States from Saudi Arabia.
I'm very happy to go to school here, especially since I've grown a lot taller and bigger.

When I was in kindergarten, I was very small in size. I liked to fight playfully and chase my friends around, just like my little brother now. Every day we would sing songs or read, "The elephant has a long, long trunk," or, "The stars in the sky are many and bright..."

When I reached second grade, I learned to do many things. Sometimes I went up to the board to write some Chinese characters. When it was my turn to be the class leader, I took our class to the Buddha hall for the Meal Offering and led them back to the classroom after lunch. Although I'm busier now, I still have time to run around the playground, play ball, and climb trees with my friends at recess. This is the time of day when we have the most freedom. During the first twenty minutes, the teacher gives us different games to play. The second twenty minutes of recess is very special: we have meditation to help our hearts calm down after playing so hard. In the beginning, I hated this kind of "playing" in which we had to sit still. I would pretend I had to use the restroom, or else I would run around the playground so the teacher wouldn't be able to find me. That way I could play outside a little longer. One day, the teacher said that I had made a lot of progress in meditation. Suddenly I was able to sit in full lotus just like everyone else--representing a golden pagoda--and it felt very comfortable. Every winter I used to suffer from coughing and asthma, and I had to take a lot of medicine. This year, my legs are more flexible and longer, and I hardly have any coughing or asthma. I think that recess is very wonderful.