Recently I found the letter I wrote when I was 16 years old (from 2001)

Hi all,<br><br>I was cleaning my stuff and found the letter I wrote in Lithuanian when I was 16 years old in 2001. I was in 10th grade at a time and was ready to travel to the United States to finish my high school studies under a program called CBYX (Congress Bundestag Youth Exchange). I won it twice and spent an entire school year in Pennsylvania, USA. It was a great program for those who were fluent in English and knew the German language. I do not think this program is still going on. Anyway, I was extremely upset with the Lithuanian people at a time and I thought that I would never come back to Lithuania. I was so angry with my last name and could not do anything about it. When I was 16, I already thought that it was very bad that my name was Dragūnas. <br><br>When I won the scholarship, I was told that my trip was funded by the American government and German government. I was extremely upset, as I was told that I had to write them letters and thank them for the scholarship and the trip to the USA and Germany. I did write the letters but I also wrote a letter to the Lithuanian government. I am translating it from Lithuanian to English for you.<br><br>Letter to President Adamkus, Prime Minister Brazauskas, President of the Parliament Bartkevičius, and the entire government of Lithuania. (2001)<br><br>I am leaving Lithuania. I am leaving for a year. I am leaving because I do not want to be in this country and live here. I am very sorry that I was born in Lithuania. I am very sorry that I have to live in Lithuania for 16 years and spend my life in such a country. I am sorry and I am going to leave it all behind.<br><br>I do not like my last name because it ends with “–as”. This last name is very common in the country and I had a difficult time at school because of it. A lot of kids made fun of it and I had a very difficult time dealing with it. Some of you may not know anything about it. I tried to get rid of it and had many sleepless nights thinking about how to change it. I tried to keep it a secret because I felt like I was betrayed. I betrayed myself when I tried to ignore the problem. I was betrayed when I could not resolve it. Why do I have to ignore it when it was not my fault? Why do I have to live with it? Look around and try to find names like that. It is very common and I do not like them. I always ask God “why did he give it to me?” I do not want to live in a country with such a last name. I do not want to have friends with such last names. I do not want to live in a country where people do not know any other last names except those. I am leaving Lithuania and hope that I will come back different and I will be able to tolerate this county and countrymen.<br><br>I do not like people with dirty hands. I do not like the people who live in green wooden houses or in old high-rise buildings with a dirty smell and mold. I do not like the people who drink vodka and beer. I do not want to be in a country where people live like animals. I do not want to be in a country where people cannot take care of themselves. Maybe I am crazy and maybe I made a mistake thinking like that. But I do not want to live like that. I want to be in a country where people care for themselves. I want to be in a country where people have clean hands. I want to be in a country where people wash their hands before eating. I want to be in a country where people do not drink vodka. I do not want to live in a country with such people. I am leaving Lithuania and hope that I will come back different and I will be able to tolerate this country and countrymen.<br><br>I do not like Lithuanian food and I do not like how people eat. I do not want to eat when table manners are neglected. People burp while eating, talk while chewing their food, and do not use napkins. I do not want to live in a country like that. I want to live in a country where people eat with dignity. I want to live in a country where people have table manners. I am leaving Lithuania and hope that I will come back different and I will be able to tolerate this country and countrymen.<br><br>I do not want to live in a country with dirty streets. I do not want to live in a country with empty green spaces. I do not like the people who throw out their trash through the windows while driving their cars. I do not like the people who throw out their trash in bus stations and in public areas. I do not like the people who want to have nice homes but throw out their trash in public areas. I want to live in a country where people have parks with flowers and trees. I want to live in a country where people care for their environment. I am leaving Lithuania and hope that I will come back different and I will be able to tolerate this country and countrymen.<br><br>I do not like how Lithuanian people dress. I do not like the way they look. I do not like how they ignore basic hygiene rules. I am not talking about the people who are poor. I am talking about the people who can afford to look nice. However, they do not care about that. I want to be in a country where people can take care of themselves. I want to be in a country where people care about their looks. I want to be in a country where people have basic hygiene. I am leaving Lithuania and hope that I will come back different and I will be able to tolerate this country and countrymen.<br><br>I do not like Catholic churches. I do not want to live in a country with so many churches. I do not want to be in a country where the church is so important. I just want to be a person who can live without churches. I am living in a country with so many unemployed people and the country has so many churches. I am living in a country where people earn 200 LTU (~ $60 USD) per month, and the country spends a lot of money on the churches. I am living in a country where people have to beg for money to build new churches. I do not want to live in a country like that. I want to live in a country where people have a normal income. I want to live in a country where people can eat normally. I want to live in a country where people have new homes and new clothes. I am leaving Lithuania and hope that I will come back different and I will be able to tolerate this country and countrymen.<br><br>This is why I chose to leave Lithuania for an entire year. This is why I wanted to travel to a different country and live there for an entire year. This is why I did not want to live in Lithuania. That is why I hate this country and its people. I hope that I will come back and forget about all these things. I hope that I will come back and be able to live here. I hope that I will want to live here. I am leaving this country for a year and I am very happy. I am happy that I am going to live with an American family. I am happy that I am going to live in a country with a lot of different cultures. I am happy that I am going to live in a country with a lot of different faiths. I am happy that I am going to live in a country with a lot of different nationalities. I am happy that I am going to live in a country with a lot of different last names. I am happy that I am going to live in a country where people know how to take care of themselves. I am happy that I am going to live in a country where people care about their environment. I am happy that I am going to live in a country where people care about their homes. I am happy that I am going to live in a country where people eat normally. I am happy that I am going to live in a country where people care about their health. I am happy that I am going to live in a country with a lot of parks and green spaces. I am happy that I am going to live in a country where people have a good income. I am happy that I am going to live in a country where people eat well. I am happy that I am going to live in a country where people have nice homes. I am happy that I am going to live in a country where people have nice clothes. I am happy that I am going to live in a country where people care about their looks. I am happy that I am going to live in a country where people have a lot of churches. I am also happy that I am going to live in a country where people have a lot of money and they can afford to build their homes. That is why I am leaving Lithuania.<br><br>I am leaving and I am very happy. I hope that I will come back different and I will be able to tolerate this country and countrymen. I am leaving and I am very happy.<br><br>Sincerely, <br>Lina Dragūnas.