Leaving thoughts

As winter break starts, I'm struck with a bit of jealousy for all the people I know headed home for the holidays. Since my program lasts the full year, I unfortunately won't be able to go home for Christmas. However, I have so many great opportunities for travelling and really getting to know Spanish culture more. 

In the spring I start an internship at the University of Alicante in the Department of Ecology. I'm really excited, but also extremely nervous. I feel like my entire undergrad career has been leading up to this point, and I'm not sure I'm prepared for it! If there's anything I've learned about being in Spain, it's that life doesn't wait for you to feel prepared. If you want to have confidence going forward into unknown territory, you just have to act like you already have that confidence. Don't hesitate, just keep plowing forward without worrying about messing up or failing (because surely you will a couple times). 

I know I have a lot more time left in Spain, and so much left to learn, but I'd like to reflect a little bit on what it means to be a student from the US studying abroad...

First of all, we beat ourselves up way too much. I know so many people who after saying they're from the US immediately follow it up with an apology for whatever the US did to make international news that week. I've had it with this attitude. Every country has its flaws and problems, and we in the US seem to think ours are the worst or that everyone else is obsessed with us like we are with ourselves. There are so many privileges we take for granted in the US, and when all we do is talk about how terrible our country is when some countries have it far worse, it comes off as really ignorant. 

Second, everyone is trying to learn English so don't be surprised or angry when people want to practice their English with you instead of helping you practice your Spanish. Be willing to help out others just as much as they help you. 

Third, stop calling yourself "American". There are a total of 35 countries in The Americas, north and south, and we are not the only ones who get to have this title. We are citizens of the United States of America, but calling yourself American fails to acknowledge that there are a lot of other countries who are technically American too. 

Fourth, try and start keeping up to date on what's going on in other countries, not just yours. Conversations often center around what's going on at the global scale, and not understanding what everyone is talking about makes understanding Spanish way harder. 

Lastly, even though I've had a hard time adjusting to life in Spain, I know people who go to study in the US have it way harder. I've met a lot of people who've told me that studying in the US was really challenging because no one reached out to them or wanted to be friends. I'm guilty of this myself as I can't remember ever making friends with a foreign student at NAU. My goal returning to the US is to reach out more to the international crowd at NAU, and I strongly encourage anyone currently in Flagstaff to do the same!!

Well, that's all for now folks! Until next time! ¡Hasta luego!