While many may think that moving to a new country would be a difficult adjustment, junior Ramen Abraham is fitting in just fine.

Abraham has lived in Evanston for just two years, and before that, he lived in Syria and Lebanon. However, Abraham claims that life isn’t much different than back in the Middle East.

“Life hasn’t really changed for me, and people get surprised when I say there isn’t a big difference between my life here and in Syria,” Abraham says. “The only difference I can think of is that the internet here is much faster.”

While Abraham didn’t live in Syria during the war, his family did move to Lebanon as a precaution.

“We knew the war was going to start because it had started in other countries,” Abraham explains. “Also, I’m Christian and we were a minority in Syria, so we decided to move to Lebanon, the only Christian country in the Middle East.”

Now, Abraham is making the most of his opportunity at ETHS. In addition to being a goalkeeper for the soccer team, he qualified for state this past fall in wrestling.

Abraham also says that his experience at school in Syria was much different than here at ETHS.

“There were no school sports in Syria,” Abraham explains. “There was no AM support, no after school activities, and we only had six classes a day.”

Abraham is enjoying every moment of his experience, and loves coming to school every day.

“I really enjoy being at ETHS,” Abraham says. “I would honestly say it’s the best thing in my life right now.”

Abraham was born in Al Hasakah, a small city in Northeast Syria, home to around 200,000 people. While he never forgets his heritage, he has adapted well to his new climate. He has found a love for deep dish pizza and his math class, and is taking advantage of every chance he gets.