OAKLAND - Beautiful things were happening in the woods of Oakland, Maine last weekend. Twenty-four Rotary exchange students representing sixteen countries had gathered at a summer camp for a welcome orientation. As a returning exchange student, or "rebound," I had the privilege of joining this happy conclave of international fellowship. 

Rotary district 7790 encompasses most of Maine as well as the Province of Québec, placing it in a rare category of international, bilingual districts. I had come with my fellow Midcoast rebounds Emma, Caroline, Sean, and Sam to share our knowledge and experience of the exchange process with a crop of newly-arrived students, or "inbounds". The Canadian rebounds–Fabian, Léa, Mélanie, Elodie, and Gabrielle–joined us late Friday night.

For us rebounds homesick for life abroad, the mere presence of exchange students quenched a burning thirst for social adventure. Emma and Mélanie, who spent last year in Germany, and Sean, who returned from Switzerland in July, chatted with the Austrian and German exchange students. Caroline and Fabian, both rebounds from Spain, afforded the South Americans a linguistic respite. Gabrielle put her Portuguese to good use in conversations with Tiago and Laura, both from Brazil. Élodie (Japan) and Léa (Taiwan) also found native speakers from their former host countries. Sam, who had spent last year in Poland, was able to converse in Polish with Eliska from the Czech Republic, for as he told me, "Czech and Polish are basically the same." 

As a Francophone rebound, I feasted on a cornucopia of linguistic opportunities. Natives speakers from Belgium, France, and Québec each brought their own special brand of Français to the table, giving rise to a diverse confluence of accents, dialects, and lexicons. I reviewed my Belgian lingo with Valentine and Axelle, had my Belgian lingo ridiculed by Alexandre from France, and strained to process the twangy, unfamiliar Québecois accent. I found speaking with the Québecois students and Rotarians particularly enriching in spite of the comprehension difficulties. Though they speak a different language, their geographical proximity to Maine provides shared cultural experiences. Our new Québecois friends encouraged us rebounds to visit them, and we plan to do so as soon as possible.

Multilingual gatherings were for me one of the purest joys of my year-long exchange in Belgium. During some Rotarians' efforts to keep the students speaking English, conversations flowed between English, French, German, Spanish, Taiwanese, and so on. Immersion in a foreign language reworks the brain to function in that language. Multilingual environments such as this Rotary orientation force the brain to function in more than one foreign language. As a result, I was constantly flipping between English, French, and Spanish, often during a single conversation. Such multilingualism exercises mental nimbleness and evokes feelings of living in multiple worlds at once.

By sending youth ambassadors around the globe to learn a new language, culture, and way of life, the youth exchange program is designed to further Rotary's goal of world peace through understanding. Despite the lofty ambitions of the program, the students must first look inward as they acclimate to a foreign environment. I recall quite clearly the crushing reality of my first days in Belgium, how I felt lost and overwhelmed and questioned why I had come at all.

The inbound students I met last weekend had all arrived within the last two weeks, and were all at different stages in their adjustment period. Language proficiency and gregariousness varied greatly, yet the indescribable love and understanding that bind exchange students were palpably present. The universal respect, deep involvement in the moment, and joy in fellowship evident in each of these fine young men and women lit in me a special fire that had burned so brightly during my own exchange.

The weekend lifted us rebounds from the sometimes oppressive familiarity of school, our native language, homework, and so on, transporting us back to the pure and exciting experience of the exchange. The next day, though, I was again just another high school student going through the motions of senior year. I do have the pleasure of sharing my school with two wonderful exchange students: Gustavo from Chile and Valentine from Belgium. Seeing Gustavo and Valentine in the crowded hallways gives me heart, for their adventures have only just begun.

Photo credits to Lotte Vanharen and Al Feather.