Working My Way Through Culture Shock

Rebecca came to the United States with the goal of experiencing American culture and learning English. She also decided that she wanted to "come out of her shell." With hard work and dedication, Rebecca has matured beyond her years and will be returning to China with a stronger sense of self, a greater understanding of the power of cultural differences, and an appreciation for what it is like to have three younger siblings! Read about Rebecca's story in her own words: 

Hi, I'm Rebecca, a 16-year old girl from China (Beijing). I took part in the Ayusa exchange program and I planned to challenge myself during my 10 months in America. I used to be a quiet girl and I really wanted to be more outgoing and sociable. Since I heard of Ayusa, I thought it would be a great chance to overcome my shyness and improve myself, so I made up my mind and came to America.I met my host family, which is very different from my real one. They have three kids and I'm the only child in my family. It took me awhile to get used to the new family and life with younger host sisters and brother. Over the first three months I was here, we argued about many kinds of things and I couldn't get along with them, but I talked to them and tried to find out the reason. After a nice conversation, I realized that their attitude of life is so different from mine and there is also a lot of culture shock between us. To solve the problem, I tried to use their view to see the world and I learned many things. Now, I get along well with them and they even bought me several gifts for Christmas! I think that I grew up a lot since I came to America. I feel happy and worthy to join the big family of Ayusa and I'm becoming closer and closer to my goal. Maybe it's not a big deal for other exchange students, but it's really a great progress to me!

That's the story I want to share with other Ayusa friends and I want to say "Merry Christmas" to everyone in Ayusa!

Sincerely,
Rebecca