Tuesday, December 8, 2009-

It’s often said that the full Rotary experience is not merely one year abroad, but rather three years. The first is the preparation, then comes the actual exchange, and finally the return.

For next year’s Minnesota/Wisconsin Outbounds, their Rotary experiences began this past weekend. The fact that it has now been 12 months since I too was interviewing, applying, requesting, and waiting to find out if I would become a Rotary Exchange student serves me up a nice slice of pride pie. I have made it through a year of excitement and disappointment, anticipation and realization, mistakes and triumphs, memory-blurring speed and clock-stopping tedium; I’ve built bridges, learned a new language, discovered what’s important in my life, had more time to simply think then I’d ever thought possible, and all while on the incredible adventure that is Rotary Youth Exchange.

My exchange to Japan has been very different than the Rotary experience that I’d held in my mind ever since the year 1999-2000. That fall, our first exchange student, Denmark’s Ole Sønderby, proved to be the epitome of cool, and somewhere in the back of my mind the exchange flame was sparked.

So when I went into the interview process last December, I had it in my head to study in some picturesque European city where I’d become fluent in days, travel the countryside on my wicker-basket bicycle, draw the village natives into a close-knit Van Trapp-esque family, and we would sing and dine and enjoy fine wines and cheese all day long… Well that’s not exactly where I ended up (and fyi I’m pretty sure no where is like that…well maybe Austria, but just because it’s really hard to do the whole Van Trapp thing without the mountains and castles...Anyway) I’ll be honest with everyone here. When I filled out my requests for countries last year my list went as follows: 1) Italy, 2) Switzerland, 3) Spain, 4) Sweden, 5) Denmark, 6) Brazil.

Well because of the age limits that Rotary places on various countries, coupled with the fact that I am already 19 years old, meant that I would end up being assigned to Japan. I waited for twenty days (which now seems like nothing but at the time felt like eternity) before receiving a large manila envelope in the mail. I was literally shaking as I opened the flaps, pulling out an official looking piece of paper with the Rotary seal and read that, “Rotary was pleased to offer me the opportunity to become a Rotary Youth Exchange Student in the year of 2009-2010 traveling to: Japan.” WHAT?!? I shook my head. I couldn’t believe that a country I had never even considered before was lying in big, bold, italics on the paper in front of me.

As the days turned into weeks, then into months, I still had trouble accepting that I would be spending my year in Japan of all places. I knew nothing of the culture, two words of the language (sushi and samurai), and was not at all excited about going from my very “Western” style of living to that of Asia. (I did know what Japan looked like vis-à-vis I took this picture of a cool cloud yesterday! haha random, but I wanted to include it). But back to the story, I refused to simply quit and at the sequential Rotary orientations I got to know the Tamura’s (my fantastic country officers) and learned more about the program. Yet best of all, by great fortune, my family was able to host my (exchange) brother, Ryota! He truly encouraged me to take the challenge, and motivated me to come abroad.

I soon began Japanese tutoring sessions once a week and quickly realized that I held countless connections to Japan in my friends, family, church, school, town, and so on. And as most of you know, to find the sweet sashimi lining on my unpredicted assignment to Japan, I do LOVE sushi and Japanese cooking. So I knew I wouldn’t starve!

As that unfolded I made it through my senior year, graduation, and a summer full of fun (and part time jobs) only to reach August 20^th, 2009, when I boarded a plane flying from Minneapolis-St. Paul to Tokyo-Narita. My first stage of RYE had finished. I was actually leaving home and the life I knew in order to live in the Land of the Rising Sun for a year.

I could go on for hours about my year here in Japan, but then I realized I already have! Simply scroll back over all my previous posts. The search bar at the right will help narrow your focus. I have included my highlights – they have been plentiful – and I have hinted at my struggles; yet I will tell you that there are certain moments that hit you in the face on exchange that you simply cannot hide from. The random smell of orange peel takes you back to Grandma’s cabin, you pass through the subway only to spot the exact Japanese twin of a friend, and that damn iTunes shuffle plays All At Once from The Fray and you’re instantly back with your sister at the concert. The list goes on and on. Yet it has shown me what I value, the conflicts I’ve had prove to me how NOT to act in the future, the disappointments I’ve felt prove to be blessings in disguise, and the challenges I’ve overcome end up being my proudest accomplishments.

It took me a while to get here, but I now realize that this year in Japan is forcing me to grow so much more than I would have if I were just the 8th Van Trapp child. I will return home proficient in an Asian culture (something that is incredibly useful in today’s world), knowing an entirely new language, and making connections in a country I would never have challenged myself to connect with otherwise.

So my advice to all of you applicants is this:

1) Don’t stick too closely to your list

2) PREPARE yourself. This is actually a third of your exchange experience, so that means find natives, find the current exchange students, and study your language!!

3) If you are at first disappointed, step back and realize that the benefits of Rotary are universal. You’ll learn from your year no matter where you’re assigned

4) If you’re having doubts, that’s normal! But if you deep-down don’t want to go, don’t do it! It’s far harder to leave, make a mess of things, and be sent home than simply to tell Rotary sooner rather than later that you can’t follow through. They’ll appreciate your honesty, be sad that you’re leaving, but glad that you didn’t create more trouble for them. Personally, I 110% would encourage you to challenge yourself, because this is an opportunity you’ll never encounter again. College will always be waiting

5) And finally: Get excited!! This is an incredible opportunity and one that you should be ecstatic about. You’ll take things away from your time abroad that will stick with you for the rest of your lives. Friendships, languages, cultures, memories, and souvenirs galore. So take a deep breath, realize how lucky you are right now, and GO GET ‘EM!!!

I’m here for any and all questions. If you don’t want to leave it on the blog, find me on Facebook or send me an email: Estenson.sam@gmail.com. I love encouraging future “exchangies” and am more than happy to talk you through everything. All my best- Sam