This really happened!

Junior year started and I wasn’t ready to think about the summer to follow. I had just become an upperclassmen thinking I’m just that much closer to becoming a senior. While having that in the back of my mind my junior seminar teacher told us about the opportunity to study abroad with the Experiment of International Living, EIL. I went home and talked to my mom about it and she thought it was a great opportunity for me to pursue. Later that month there was a mandatory meeting, so we could get started with the application process. While filling out the forms, I began to worry about many aspects of our trip. This trip took me completely out of my comfort zone. I had never left the country before or even away from my parents for a long amount of time. Additionally, I was afraid that I might not fit in with the other students in our travel group. Meeting new people and not being as social as others I knew it would be a challenge. However, it is apparent to me that this trip showed and made me appreciate the person I am inside and out.
After getting accepted into the program, I was given the invitation to go to Spain. Now for the best part of the travel prep, shopping. I bought my suitcase, passport, and even a case for my passport ,so I wouldn’t lose it! While packing my clothes and making sure I had everything needed for my trip, I noticed I didn’t. I didn’t have my full heart into it. Yes, I was excited about leaving the country and yes I was excited about this being a new experience for me, but I really set my hopes up for the United Kingdom program studying journalism. With this being a bump in the road for me I had to push myself to keep an open mind and to appreciate the opportunity I have been awarded that not many other high school students are able to get.
As my departure time from John F. Kennedy Airport arrived, I started to notice that this trip was going to either make or break me. I initiated casual conversations with the people in my group and got to know just the surface of everybody. When we boarded the plane I was shocked that we all weren’t sitting next to each other. That’s when I thought to myself “not only am I alone on this flight overseas, but I am not close to anybody that I “quote un-quote know”. Honestly, this scared me. At this point I knew it was time to grow up. Beginning with improving my skill of being responsible. I had to keep track of my plane ticket, make sure I had all my things together and not become astray from my group.
Once we landed we began to do projects and come together as one; it was as if we had known each other for years. In Madrid we really got to see ourselves produce something that could possibly be used in everyday life. We designed many things for a park that was really ran down. We started off by brainstorming together to see what the area needed. Most of the conversation was self-lead, but taken in consideration we are all teenagers somebody needed to step up and mediate when things got a little rough. I took it upon myself to make sure our conversations went smoothly, which overall helped my leadership skills. We engaged with the community by going around asking them exactly what they would like to see in the park. Thereafter we gathered all the information, went back to the drawing board, and started to produce the actual objects. In the center where the 3D printer was we sat in front of computers with a partner and started to design. Most of the time in the partnerships each person wanted to do something different so to cause less confusion I decided to make a list of everything that needed to be made and everybody as a couplet choose one. This seemed to work out very more successfully than how we were doing it in the first place. We also designed many bike racks for the vast amount of riders in the community, thinking it would be a good idea to give them what they need. The racks were cut out of wood from a laser cutter that our instructor taught us how to use. During this process I learned that it’s okay to not only be a leader by my actions, but also by the things I may communicate. The city of Madrid was the place that I noticed this trip was going to make me a better person overall.
To end this wonderful experience I learned that I can do things on my own and not rely on anybody. While learning how to be independent I also improved my leadership skills by helping out the group when need be and help lead group discussions. Honestly, I feel like this two to three page limit is not enough for me to explain how much I grew on this trip. Just know that this experience was truly an experiment and I got the result I hoped for.