Dear Friend,

Although we are from two completely different sides of the world, we have connected in so many ways. Despite cultural and social differences, we have formed a bond that is stronger than distance and language. Thank you for taking your time to be a friend to me!

Thank you for being patient with me. In my many failed attempts to learn your language and asking countless questions about your country-thank you for your patience as you explain your way of life, one that I am so eager to learn about. Thank you for repeating words and phrases slowly and so many times so that I may be able to ask for simple things.

Thank you for sharing your culture with me! From the food that you have cooked for me to the day trips around your country, I am eternally grateful for your eagerness to share your culture with me. Thank you for working so hard to immerse me with all the beauties and riches that your country has to offer.

Thank you for caring for me. Being sick in a hospital in a foreign country is a frightening experience! Thank you for visiting me and sitting with me for hours in the hospital, playing Rummy with me to pass the time. Thank you for finding me a bandaid when I got terrible blisters from walking those cobblestone streets. Because of your kindness and compassion, I was able to feel at ease thousands of miles away from home.

Thank you for being willing to learn about my culture. Thank you for taking an interest in my home country as well! I am just as excited to share my traditions from Louisiana with you as you are to share the traditions from your country with me. Comparing our roots, we discovered that we were more similar than we ever thought possible.

Thank you for making me laugh. Being far away from home can be a stressful thing, however, it did not seem to be when I was able to spend time with your gracious family! Thank you for the many family movie nights your family shared with me. I'll never forget those nights your mom talked about her favorite singer and belted out his songs, which made us laugh until our stomachs hurt.

Thank you for loving me. Thank you for showing me that love has no bounds! Whether we are sharing a bedroom together for months or a million miles away, I am always able to feel the effects of you and your family's love. Agreeing to host a foreign exchange student from another country was not an easy decision, however, the love that you shared with my family and I was inspiring- so much so that when the day you finally had to leave us and go back home, we all cried because we did not want you to go!

Thank you, thank you, thank you; for all of the life lessons you have taught me, for accepting me and my family, for trusting us to travel far away from home in order to live with complete strangers, and most of all thank you for being a life long friend!