Every student who has taken Spanish with me knows that I want all of my students to study in another country. My point of view and the way I look at things were affected deeply by experiences I had while living abroad.  As a person growing up on a farm in rural Indiana I never imagined that I would travel outside of my state much less actually live overseas for nine years.  I had a great life growing up. I did well in language at my high school.  My college professor said to learn to be fluent you need to immerse yourself in the language and culture.   Surprisingly, my parents said yes to my studying abroad.  Before I knew it, I had spent my junior year at IU in Madrid, Spain.  What a year!  Instead of simply learning Spanish language and culture, I learned so much about myself and my country.

I had a fantastic experience in Spain.  It wasn’t easy every day, but overall it was life-changing.  I actually met my husband in Spain (he is American, not Spanish) and then, as a young couple with small children, we took  jobs in Germany and ended up living there for eight years.  There, I was part of the International School Community, which gave me more insight on cultures around the world.  Our three children have all studied abroad as college students, and they will tell you that it has enriched their lives.  So, for the Vazquez family, our way of thinking, our way of life, our culture, is a little different than that of most Americans because of our experiences.

New and different personal experiences shape our culture and the way we interact with the world.  Yes, one can read about other parts of world, but there is no real connection unless it’s personal and you can relate to it somehow.  Many of the things I thought I knew about other cultures were not always correct.  And, the ideas that people had about Americans also shocked me at times.  I wanted to set them straight on some things and then on others I realized they were right.

When we moved back to the States, we left behind the ways of the culture I didn’t like, and we kept the ways we did like.  I was more critical of things I didn’t like about the United States but very appreciative of the fact that I am an American with many freedoms. I was not keenly aware of this  until I was an expatriate.  I really had no idea how influential our country is in this world.

So, now I’m here in Carmel, IN (which even has a culture of its own).   I share my little life stories to which teenagers hopefully can relate.  I believe they remember them because they are personal.  Yes, most of the time we are studying grammar and learning how to speak Spanish.  I pick up on something that we are studying from our textbook in the culture section, then I attach one of my personal stories to it.  That is when they listen.  The students who have had an abroad experience or are first generation Americans nod their heads and understand. For the rest who haven’t had those experiences yet, I hope my personal stories are  enough to get them excited about traveling, or studying abroad, or at least aware that when living and working in this global world, cultural awareness is extremely important.