Although national sibling day comes and goes, a bond with siblings is forever. If you’ve ever had an exchange student stay with you and your family, your life is probably now permanently changed. Exchange students are called your "brother" or "sister" when they stay with a host family, and a particular exchange student brought so much joy into my life. Sam stayed with my family for 3 months in the spring of 2015, and life has never been the same since. Although initially, I didn’t know what it would be like to live and go to school with someone who wasn’t related to me, I now cherish the memories I have.
First, experiencing Sam's culture was incredible. Sam is from Spain, so on one of his first nights at our house he made my family paella. Paella is a rice dish that typically includes seafood, veggies, and saffron--and of course when Sam made it I was difficult. I made a big deal about how the shrimp had eyeballs and refused to eat it. It smelled delicious though and looking back I wish I hadn’t been so picky. Now I realize what a special and rare opportunity it was to have someone native to Spain cook an authentic Spanish meal. Sam if you’re reading this, I’m sorry because just looking at pictures of paella now makes my mouth water. Here’s what it looks like:
Second, I took Sam to my junior prom. I didn't have a boyfriend at the time and had no one to go with. So I sort of sprung it on him the first day we met and said "no" wasn't an option. Inviting Sam to my prom was such a great decision and he definitely left an impression. When the DJ put on the song "Bailando" by Enrique Iglesias, he and a girl immediately started salsa dancing and a crowd formed around them. I remember screaming, "that's my brother!" and loving the attention he received. Although we had just met and I was cold to him at first, I'm so glad he was my date. No one can dance better than he can!
Next, we spent a lot of time together. He was a senior and I was a junior, so Sam and I were closer in age than he was to my brother. My job every day was to drive the two of us to and from school. We quickly bonded by singing along to the radio and talking about his life back home. Sam's English was very advanced after already spending 9 months with other host families, so we talked about everything our hearts desired. We hung out most weekends with other exchange students in the area, which was really cool. I remember going out to dinner with Sam and the other exchange students and thinking how mind blowing it was to be sitting with people from Spain, Brazil, Belgium, Italy, and the Netherlands. How crazy is that? Pretty unbelievable.
Finally, when it was time for Sam to go back home to Spain, I was a wreck. I was not ready for him to leave. We had grown so close that to this day I say he's my brother. Those were 3 amazing months that I'll never forget for the rest of my life. It's been a couple years since he left, but I still think about him often. We talk every now and then and we always reflecting back on the good memories we created, so this is to Sam. You changed my life and one day we will see each other again!
