Today is Sunday - in the Faroe Islands, this means you are required to do absolutely nothing - and the weather is horrible. I'm looking out the window right now and it's lightning, thundering, hailing, and now... snowing. You can't argue with Faroese weather, you just have to let it do it's thing.
So I'm going to use this time to take a flashback to about a year ago today. A year ago today, I had just finished applying to be a Rotary Youth Exchange student. I didn't know where I wanted to go, and I didn't really care, as long as I got to go somewhere. Yet still, for some reason I found myself second guessing my country list - which was, if I can remember correctly, Faroe Islands, Estonia, South Africa, Argentina, and Denmark. I thought the period of time between finishing the last interview and receiving my acceptance/host country letter would be the hardest part. I remember constantly thinking about where I was going to end up, if I was even going to end up going anywhere at all. And then feeling confused because I didn't know which pictures I should envision in my head, or if I should even get my hopes up and envision anything at all. It was the weirdest feeling. I find a lot of those "weird feelings" associated with youth exchange.
I remember distinctly when I found out that I was accepted, and where I was going. I was standing in a store called Sports Authority in Burnsville. I had my mom go outside to receive the call from the Northfield Youth Exchange officer, because I was too hysterical about the whole thing to hear anything for myself. For some reason I was pretending to be emotionless and completely interested in snow boats, even though my dad and sister probably knew I didn't give two hoots about the snow boats. My mom walked back in and the first thing I said to avoid humiliation was, "It was a no". And my mom said, with her eyes wide and a smile on her face, "No."
I can't remember exactly what I thought in Sports Authority, but I can remember that the Faroe Islands was all I could think about that entire day. And all I could talk about. I wouldn't shut up. I emailed and Facebook messaged almost every family member and friend. We were having a kind of "Christmas weekend" in Minneapolis at the time. I'm sure my family wanted to be in the Christmas spirit, but I wouldn't shut up about the Faroe Islands. Excitement would be an understatement.
So, the months went on and my excitement for my exchange year in the Faroes was slowly replaced with fear, nervousness and doubt. I would miss so much in one year. I specifically remember one night sitting on my parents bed, explaining to my mother that I didn't think it was a good idea for me to go on exchange next year because I was doubting myself. Sweet Jesus. That was probably the dumbest thing I have ever said.
For about a month or two in March and April, I was so close to having my mom call Rotary to tell them that I wouldn't be going on exchange in August. I owe it to one Rotex student of whom I don't know the name, that said something at the first Rotary orientation. She said, "In the next few months, you're going to have doubts. You're going to wonder what the h*** you are doing. Just go. It's the best thing you will ever do".
To be honest I didn't agree with her at the time, that it was the best thing I will ever do. But, I listened to her and I got on the plane in August and now here I am in the Faroe Islands having the most amazing experience of my life. There are up's and down's, of course, but when I look at the overview of my year thus far and put everything together, I get teary eyed because I am so grateful that I never had my mom call Rotary.
So now I say to you - all the students that are applying exactly what that Rotex said to me.
JUST GO. You have no idea what you are doing, I know. That's exactly why you have to go.
~
On a lighter note that has nothing to do with Faroese culture or exchange - I tried sushi for the first time on Wednesday and to my surprise, I loved it.
Katie
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