Over
two years ago, I packed my two polka-dot suitcases and headed to the airport
for a 5 month study abroad journey in Northern England. As a local Billings
girl who had never left the states and was still living with my family through
college, this was the opportunity of a lifetime. I had been raised on BBC dramas
and loved European history and had made studying abroad a life-dream as a
little girl. As an English Literature student I was dying to know their
perspective on some of the old literature I’d read and visit some of the great
places referenced in my many books. Studying abroad was something that shaped me,
and as I look around at other students, desiring to learn and grow and yet somehow
stuck in one way or another, it seems to me we should be a little more
proactive about encouraging our own students and children to seek out this kind
of adventure for several reasons.
1. Studying abroad is a perfect mix of independence and
freedom while being limited in time, being organized by a school, and being
given a place to live. I am not downplaying the courage it took for myself and
for others to do something like this, however, the security of knowing I’d be
picked up from the airport by someone connected to the school I’d be studying
at and given a room to stay in was extremely comforting. Also, having the time
limit of five months gave me something to hold on to on the hardest days.
2. Studying abroad is different than merely traveling.
Learning similar things from a different viewpoint was very beneficial. Taking
a Shakespeare class as a freshman in the states is quite different than taking
one as a junior in England. Before you expect me to go on and on about how the
latter was far superior, it truly wasn’t. I respected and enjoyed both of my
teachers and they each brought new ideas and perspectives on the table. Being
in America, there is a distance from some of the culture and history brought
about in some of these subjects giving us a clear head for how to perceive
certain issues. Being in England, there was an identity found in some of the
historical happenings and cultural issues being discussed, showing me how
important their history is and how it influences them even now.
3. I have friends from all over the world and that is
something I hope to take advantage of someday. Making friends was one of the
most difficult aspects for me. I forced myself to attend clubs and events in
hopes to make that bosom friend from England I’d been dreaming about. I waited
five months for this to happen and suddenly realized that my closest friends
were the other international students that I had bonded with. While I didn’t
meet the friend I had imagined in my head, I enjoyed getting to know people as
we went to lunch or to the pub or out to tea. I now have friends in England,
France, Finland, Argentina, and places in the states I’ve never been. While we
don’t all communicate constantly, I now know that if I ever am able to travel
again (which I truly hope to do) than I have someone I can call. And traveling
with a friend is so much more edifying than traveling alone.
4 It wasn’t the perfect dream I’d imagined in my head.
While this doesn’t seem like the best reason to encourage young adults to study
abroad, I think this is deeply important. Now, of course, this isn’t everyone’s
experience, for some it is the idyllic adventure they always imagined it to be.
However, very early on in my travels, I realized that while I was in a town
surrounded by ancient, Roman walls with cobblestone streets and a gorgeous
cathedral that rang every hour, I still had to lug groceries back to my room,
go to class at 9:00 on Monday morning, and do laundry. I planned trips to
castles and Spain and London, but I also walked miles soaked to the bone in
rain, got lost in Barcelona, and slept in some questionable hostels. However,
it was those moments that stretched me as a person. I learned how to deal with
difficult, frightening moments because I knew the next moment I would be
viewing something thousands of years old with tremendous importance. I dealt
with the blisters because I knew that looking at the rolling green hills and
pastures was a view I’d never forget. I learned that life is still very much
life, even in other countries that we may have romanticized. I learned that the
people are still just people with different stories and preferences and
personalities. Going abroad wasn’t as picturesque as I thought it’d be, but
because of that I learned much more about the world and was tested in my
perseverance. However, this has not dampened my desire to travel again. In
fact, it now only gives me confidence that I have done so and can do so again
even if it means traveling in large airports, going on overnight bus rides, and
trying to read maps.
5. Before I left Billings, I had a very detailed idea of how
my life was to be. Coming home was very different than my expectations. Some
things change while others fall apart. Before I left Billings, I never imagined
going far or doing anything too risky. While I still have much to learn and am
not quite sure where life will take me, studying abroad has made me a little
more flexible. I hope now that there are a few more adventures left in store
for me, and I’m doing my best to find them. I also hope, however, that as the
first one did, the others will bring me back home in the end.
Learning
and growing doesn’t happen in a stagnant environment. When my parents took me
to the airport to say goodbye, my mom looked me in the eyes and quoted one of
our most beloved stories, “You are braver than you believe, stronger than you
seem, and smarter than you think” (“Winnie the Pooh,” A. A. Milne). Education
is about so much more than the grade report and amount of money you make after
graduation day. The support and encouragement I had to take this step changed
my life in subtle yet significant ways. Exploring the world, taking in new
things, and meeting new people is one of the best opportunities our educations
gives us to mature and challenge ourselves. Just one more reason to encourage
others to study abroad.
