April 18, 2008
by Hugh Sigmon
In 1967, a wide-eyed 17-year-old from a small town in North Carolina steps into the doorway of a jet that just landed in Manila, The Philippines. As he steps onto the tarmac and into his summer adventure as an exchange student, little does he know that this summer will be like no other and it will forever change his life.
In 1999, a 17-year-old steps off a jet, this time in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and exchanges a comfortable life in Chappaqua for the unknown excitement of a community service project in Northern Argentina and a home stay with four new brothers. Learning to communicate in a new language and to see the world differently, he begins a journey that has had a major impact on his life and is also having an impact today on the lives of those without a voice in government.
In 2004, a 15-year-old from Bangkok, Thailand, steps off a plane at JFK, and exchanges life in a bustling city of 12 million for a year at Horace Greely High School and a family of previously empty nesters. The host parents learn what to order in a Thai restaurant and discover that there is no word in Thai for “shoveling snow.” The student learns to speak American English with a Southern accent, and makes friends and memories that will last a lifetime.
In December 2007, two families are united under a sky filled with fireworks celebrating a national holiday honoring the king of Thailand. Sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, parents and grandparents are gathered together to meet the family from Chappaqua, New York. More than just a great vacation and an introduction to a fascinating culture, this is also a celebration of the experience that has brought us together and that has opened the door to our individual adventures. We toasted AFS.
Memories that last a lifetime
This is my personal experience with AFS, an organization that provides intercultural learning opportunities to help people develop the knowledge, skills and understanding needed to create a more just and peaceful world. I am the kid from North Carolina who traveled to The Philippines, who after college reunited with one of my Filipino brothers and moved to New Jersey and began working in New York.
Years later I moved with my family to Chappaqua. Our son Eric traveled to Argentina with AFS and is now an immigration policy advocate in Washington, DC. When both of our sons graduated from college, we decided to offer the AFS experience to another teenager and welcomed Jaab from Bangkok to our home. Last December, Eric, my wife Paula and I traveled to Bangkok to visit Jaab, now a college student, and his family.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do
Part of the fun of any cultural exchange immersion is the opportunity to experience a local tradition. For me that opportunity came at my “despedida” or farewell party. Since I attended a local high school during my summer exchange, my school planned a farewell party. I was to learn a local Filipino folk dance called tinikling to perform at the party in my honor.
If you do a search on tinikling you find that it is very similar to jump rope, but instead of a spinning rope, two bamboo poles are used. The poles are held by two people, one pole in each hand. They hit the poles on the floor twice, then raise them, then hit the poles together again to the pattern of open, open, close. The person, sometimes persons, in the middle hop over and outside the poles before they come together. When mastered, it is considered a form of dance.
The search results also said, “WARNING: Ensure that very flexible poles are used. This game can hurt ankles if done too aggressively or with the wrong equipment!” Now they tell me! After a week of practice I was getting the hang of this new dance and having fun as well, but on the day before the performance I mistimed a step and came down on “close” instead of “open, open.” The result was a badly sprained ankle. I wanted desperately to make my tinikling performance, so my host family went to extraordinary lengths to heal my ankle.
First I was taken to house where a man wrapped a metal watch band around my foot. The band was hooked to a 12-volt battery that ran an electric current to my injured ankle. After a period of electric stimulation I was sent to a local pharmacy to buy vitamins. Fearing that my sprain might require additional healing measures, my host family hedged and took me to a local folk healer. His bamboo house was located at the back of our rice farm, and after some conversation at his door I was ushered in and sat on his floor as he rubbed a salve mixed with his own saliva onto my ankle.
The next day I limped onto the stage for the ceremony, but I still limped so badly I could not perform. In a few days, however, I was walking around just fine. To this day I wonder which treatment – the electric shock or the flavored salve – had the true healing effect.
Our Thai exchange student became enamored of American holidays
Jaab was raised in the Buddhist tradition, and Bangkok is a cosmopolitan city that carefully selects holiday practices from many international cultures. During our visit last December the hotels and shopping malls were decorated for Christmas with shoppers buying gifts for the New Year rather than for Christmas or Hanukah. When Jaab stayed with us, he became enamored of American holidays such as Halloween and Christmas.
He enjoyed the outing to a local pumpkin farm, selected his favorite pumpkins and gleefully went trick or treating with Paula in our neighborhood. Our extra-large trick or treater got some strange looks, but savored the experience. Soon afterward, he helped us select, buy and decorate our tree, cooked some Thai food for our annual Christmas holiday party, and then joined us for a trek to North Carolina to celebrate the holidays with our extended family.
On Christmas Eve, we set off in search of a last-minute Santa photo experience. Jaab, quite a good sport, and his host parents joined all the little kids and their parents on line as they anxiously waited their turn to meet Santa. It is important to mention that Jaab, then 16, was six feet one inch tall and weighed 250 lbs. His frame towered over all the children decked out in their Christmas finery. When it was Jaab’s turn, Santa looked up and did a double take at the size of his next visitor. He wisely decided that Jaab should not sit on his lap, but motioned for him to sit on the arm of the chair. Jaab got his photo, and Santa went home with an interesting story that night for Mrs. Claus.
History of AFS
Living abroad as an exchange student is an experience that has had a huge impact on our lives. Each year, AFS-USA sends more than 1,500 U.S. participants abroad for year-long, semester-long, and summer exchange programs, including some that focus on language study, community service, sports and adventure. AFS-USA also welcomes more than 2,800 exchange students and educators from other countries into the U.S. each year.
“During World Wars I & II,” according to the AFS web site, www.afs.org, “young Americans volunteered as ambulance drivers in the American Field Service evacuating the wounded from battlefields. When these brave, forward thinking individuals returned home, they founded a movement to promote understanding and peace through international student exchanges, known today as AFS Intercultural Programs. The AFS Founders believed—as AFS believes today—that the way to build a more just and peaceful world begins when people from different countries and cultures meet, learn together, and better understand one another. In 1947, for the first time ever, AFS exchanged 52 young people from 11 countries formerly at war, establishing a legacy of hope for future generations.”
AFS activities today
AFS exchanges students each year among a partnership of more than 50 AFS partner countries. It proudly acknowledges an alumni network of more than 300,000 individuals who have studied abroad on an AFS Program. Former AFS students live in more than 100 countries around the world. As one of the largest volunteer-based organizations of its kind, AFS has 30,000 volunteers worldwide and approximately 5,000 in the U.S.
What are you doing this summer?
If you want an unforgettable summer experience for your high school son or daughter, AFS and other similar organizations offer a wide range of exchange programs. The Greeley guidance department has information if you or your student wants to know what types of programs are available, or you may contact AFS directly for a catalog listing current programs.
Also, if you have ever thought about hosting a foreign exchange student but didn’t know how to get started, here’s your chance to connect with an organization with nearly 60 years of experience. Host families open their homes and hearts to students and provide them with a bed, meals, guidance and support. Host families for the academic year, for a single semester, and for 4—6 week welcome programs are needed for students from more than 50 countries. Host families receive the support of regional AFS volunteers and staff. The students, 15 to 18 years old, bring their own spending money and medical coverage, and have a desire to participate as active members of their host families, schools and communities. AFS is seeking host families for next year’s incoming students. We hope that you will set another place at your table for a foster son or daughter and learn as we did about the differences and the many similarities shared by teenagers around the world.
If you would like to know more about our experience as host parents, or if you’re interested in sending your son or daughter abroad on an AFS program in one of 40 countries, please call us with your questions at 238-4137, or contact AFS by phone at 1-800-AFS-INFO or on the Web at www.afs.org/usa.
Copyright 2008 NewCastleNOW.org