It is now June.
Last year at this time, I was graduating high school. I was
talking to my future first host family frequently, trying to pack my whole life
into 2 suitcases, and completely in the dark about what awaited me upon arrival
to Mexico.
Nothing is ever as it appears, and exchange is no different. It
has been a crazy year.
I am going home July 1st. This month will be one of the
craziest 30 days I have ever spent. When I left Wisconsin, I was saying goodbye
but it was more like, "see you later". For many of the people I met
this year, goodbye is just that.
My year in review:
I traveled to new places. My favorites: Oaxaca, San Cristobal de
las Casas, and Acapulco. I would definitely recommend that anyone passing
through Mexico visit those cities. Of course, Veracruz is where I have spent
most of my time, and I have to say I got pretty lucky. It’s hot, but I am
always within like 2 miles of the ocean. The people are friendly. Another plus
is it’s pretty!
I have learned that the world is a really small place. I went to
Mexico, a Croatian went to my house, and a Mexican boy went to her house. An
exchange student from my district in the US went to Turkey, and met my second
host brother and another boy from my district in Mexico. I have friends in
Finland, Brazil, Belgium, Germany, Taiwan, Japan, Hungary, Australia, France,
and pretty much every corner of the globe.
I
have learned how to live with many different kinds of people with different
ways of life. In the end, though, I am really happy that I was born into my
family. As an exchange student we learn that “it’s not wrong, it’s just
different”, and that is the truth. You cannot look at another culture and
criticize anything because your own culture provides a basis for all of your
beliefs. It is hard to tell how deep the way someone was raised truly affects
them, and there are times that after ten months in another country I come
across differences I never could have anticipated. You learn to love your own
country and culture more than you could have ever imagined because it is what
you are made of. You realize that everyone is flawed, every country, every way
of life. But they also are all perfect in their own ways.
I
am excited to go home and to work for my own money. I’m sure my mom and dad are
laughing as I write this, but I miss working and productivity SO much. I miss
my independence, being able to go to the movies without asking my parents for
money, being able to drive myself where I need to go. This year I had to learn
to depend on people again, and to be honest I hate it!! I hate having to always
ask someone to take me to the plaza, or to have to rely on the awful unreliable
bus that passes my house only when it feels like it. Because of all the
independence I have been given throughout my life in the US, I did not learn
independence as an exchange student, but rather dependence. However, I have
also had moments that force me completely out of my comfort zone, for example
the first day I took the bus alone in Mexico and I was not left with
instructions on how to actually get where I needed to go.
I
have 3 weeks and 2 days left here, and I plan to have a nice time. It will be
filled with goodbyes, see you laters, and lots of hugs. I am going to enjoy
myself and take home some wonderful memories of Mexico. I will never forget the
incredible people I met this year and several will be lifelong friends of mine.
I lived through some hard times in Veracruz and I had some difficult months
personally.
I
hope I managed to undo some of the stereotypes plaguing people from the USA. Rotary
exchange students are ambassadors, whether they like it or not. We do care
about our families and spend time with them, even if it involves crossing the
country and working extra to be able to. We are hard workers. The USA is not
like all the movies we produce. (Thank goodness!) Always remember that your
actions reflect on your family, your town, your country.
Travel
is an insatiable need. Once you leave your own country, or even just your city,
curiosity builds and it becomes impossible to stay away. The world is a really
big place and there is a lot to see. Simply put: wanderlust never goes away! I’ll
be traveling to new places for a long time.
This
will probably be my last blog post before I go home on July 1st.
Thanks to everyone who took the time to read this blog throughout the year! I
really appreciate it. To everyone who supported me during my adventure (mom), I
owe you big time! The people who hold a special place in my heart are those who
never gave up on me, who knew I would be up to whatever challenges faced me,
who sent encouraging notes and kind words. If you only knew how much that meant
to me throughout the year…
Anyone reading this blog does NOT fall into the following category, but just for good measure: to those who thought going on exchange was a
stupid idea, or that putting off a year of college would only leave me behind,
or that I shouldn’t have gone to Mexico, they were wrong. Many says their
exchange year was “the best year of their life”. Mine was not the best year of
my life. (I have a lot of years left in my life, after all!) I did learn a lot
about myself, became pretty much fluent in Spanish (something I wouldn’t have
done in the USA), and had some good moments. It was not easy, it was not a 10
and a half month vacation. I went to an awesome country and lived a lot in a
year. If they still think it wasn’t worth it, good. Everyone is entitled to
their opinion, but no one will take away everything I did to get here and come home a better person.
