One day, my mom sat down with my siblings and I to discuss something important. She said that we were too sheltered and should experience what the world and different cultures have to offer. The next year, we ended up hosting 10 international students and families.

Our first student went to Rosary. She was really sweet and a little quiet, but it was fun living with her. She came from China and visited her grandparents here as well.

After her, we hosted a French international student. When he came here, he was 16-years-old, loved basketball, and was super funny. His name was Elliot, but he always mispronounced it, so it sounded like he was saying “idiot.”

One time, we made him try peanut butter because they didn’t have it in France, and it became his favorite food. A year later, his sister and parents stayed for a week. They showed us some healthy recipes for tomato basil mozzarella appetizers and also showed us how to make the best French crepes.

We even had four Chinese girls around the ages of 13 to 17 stay for a week. All I remember is that they got to choose American names and one of them chose the name “Ice.” My favorite part of hosting the students was introducing them to American foods. I got to show this group In-n-Out; while some loved it, others hated it.

Once, we hosted a group of three boys around the age of 16 who were super quiet but very polite. I often forget how much our language can get misconstrued because one time, it was almost fatal. We took the boys to the pool and asked if they could all swim. The boys said they could, but one of the boys couldn’t. My mom quickly realized this miscommunication error and jumped in to save him. Luckily he was okay, but after that, we never visited the pool with them again.

Finally, we hosted a girl around the age of 16 who came from Mongolia in China. Her name was Christine. She told me all about her life, her village, and her favorite food. She asked us if we wanted to try some of the food she shipped from a Chinese market and we said yes.

On Chinese New Year, Christine was dressing up in traditional festival attire and asked if my sister and I wanted to try on the clothes. We said yes and learned about each clothing item and even the celebration of the New Year. Sadly, she had to leave early due to the pandemic, but she still keeps up with me to this day.

Overall, I am grateful I had the opportunity to share my house with different people from different cultures. I am lucky that I was able to hear about their lives and about how their countries work. In the future, I hope to host more students from different countries, so I can continue to gain respect for the culture and livelihood of others.