On Saturday, January 23rd, I had my first orientation session. And it was during this session I realized that what is happening is real. I'm going to Poland in August!!!
My parents and I drove up to the school in the pouring rain, yes it was raining in January! I had no idea what to expect, but the moment that I walked into the entrance and was greeted by the cheerful Rotary Youth Exchange volunteers I knew it was going to be a good day. There is something about Rotary, every time I'm at a Rotary event I feel good. Excited, relaxed, and interested. Good omens! As I walked in the front door I was handed a binder full of information, titled with my name and Rotary International Youth Exchange. With that binder I feel official!
The first order of business was to be fitted for my Rotary blazer. I will wear my Rotary blazer when I'm traveling, to show that I'm an exchange student, and at certain functions. The blazers are a dark navy blue, very professional. I have seen some pretty unique Rotary blazers (try bright green)and I'm relieved with the elegent class of ours!
We then all trudged down to the auditoriom, where a majority of orientation took place. Actually, I think this was the only place that could fit all 65 students and their parents. The members of the Rotary Youth Exchange committee were introduced and then all 65 of us squeezed onto the stage and introduced ourselves. Name, school and grade, host Rotary club, and country. It was really exciting to hear where everyone was going - from Tiwain to South Africa, Poland to Brazil. There were a lot of students going to Brazil. And a lot of students from Northfield! It was at this point when I realized I wished I could be going to all and/or any of the countries mentioned. It's not the country which makes the expereince, it's what you put into and what you do while in that country.
I'm the only one going to Poland and this has its pluses and minuses. It means that I'll meet other Rotary students from all over the world and I'll certainly be immersed into Polish life. It also means that I'll be starting from scratch. I'm slightly jealous of those for whom orientation meant meeting the other students heading on the same journey with you. Luckily for me, in our small country groups (Poland, Spain, and Italy), everyone is really nice and I'm excited to get to know them better!
At orientation we talked about culture shock, travel arrangements, the famous 5 Ds, and language learning. Then while parents talked about insurance and finances, students talked about hot issues and how to deal with them. It was interesting and something that I hadn't really thouht about a lot. How am I going to answer a question that might offend someone? I think that the tips I received are going to be very helpful.
The discussion about language learning was very interesting! The presenter was great and really knew her stuff. She talked about how helpful it will be to have a basic level of Polish when I leave. She broke up the languages into groups, and Polish is in the second group which means I should try to have about 150 - 200 contact hours before I leave. It sounds like a lot, but I think its doable and something I really aspire to do.
I was fortunate enough that a Polish-American writer was at the orientation. He left Poland in 1985, escaping Communist persecution. He gave me his business card and I'm really excited to keep in contact with him. In fact, though no one else is going to Poland, I have so many contacts. It's amazing how many people know someone from Poland, and yes they would love to talk with you! I'm really thankful for the support, excitement, and acceptance of everyone I talk to.
As I mentioned at the beginning, going to orientation made me realize that my exchange is not going to happen next August, next year; it's happening this August, this year, and its coming up. I'm filled with suspense, but it's good suspense. The kind filled with excitement and dreams. All I want to do is learn about Poland (which is good because I have a 8 page research paper on Poland due Feb 17th!). I want to know where I'm going and who my family is going to be. But I know that it's all part of the journey and I'm excited for the process.
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