As to avoid the awful cliché about how “studying abroad changed my life”, I won’t come out and say it. But I’m finding it increasingly hard to deny these days.
In June, I returned from Italy after 4+ months of traveling, growing, and eating unbelievably delicious pasta, and I returned home to a super busy summer in my hometown. I worked non-stop, completing three different part-time internships/jobs, and I spent lots of time with friends and family. It felt right to be home after such a long time and have my life go back to normal. But back to normal, it seemed, was a different normal, because I’d grown so much during those monumental four months due to my incredible experiences. I interned at an Italian high school helping teachers and students with English, and I took classes that brought me all over Europe and taught me about globalization in a way I could have never imagined. I ate phenomenal food, met fascinating new people, and so much more.
After almost three months of being home, I finally have the time to adequately reflect on all that I encountered throughout Italy and across Europe. Although it’s hard to pin down all the ways my semester affected me, I know I’ve gained many practical and emotional skills. I learned how to use plenty public transits and navigated confusing cities in which I didn’t speak the language. But more importantly, I have become more empathetic and curious, two important life skills I know will continue to evolve in the years to come.
Thankfully, my feelings about my semester abroad are common, and countless students come back from wherever they chose to spend their time abroad with new goals and a new perspective. So, as I enter my senior year of college, I hope to utilize the tools I gained, continue to grow as a student and as a person, and engage with those who are doing the same. And even though it may be true, I promise I will never, ever say “abroad changed me.” ☺