Students prove home is where the heart is

For two Foothills students, the end of the school year closes an adventurous chapter of their lives.

Erika Falk, of Sweden, and Sara Pous Grau, of Spain, arrived in August 2015 as part of the Rotary exchange program. Falk was hosted by the High River Rotary Club and attended Highwood High School while the Okotoks Rotary Club brought Pous Grau to study at Foothills Composite High School.

Both girls began their year abroad with excitement, some trepidation, and a steep learning curve as they adjusted to a new culture and learned to converse in English. Ten months later, Falk and Pous Grau said they wouldn’t trade their year in Canada for anything.

“It’s really ended up just the way I wanted it to be, very busy and a lot of experiences, trying out new things,” said Falk.

She played rugby with the Highwood Mustangs this spring, something she never could have done at home.

“We don’t do the sports in schools, we do them outside of school,” said Falk. “Doing it with the school people was a new experience and it was so much fun.”

Besides extracurricular activities, there were other differences from home that took some getting used to, she said. In Sweden, students are not offered optional courses like trades as part of their schooling, she said.

“It’s been great trying something different, not only academic subjects but trying courses like communication technology and catering that I would never do at home,” said Falk. “You pick a program and most programs just have academic subjects. I have gym, but I don’t have all these catering courses and photography.”

It took a lot of hard work in the fall to break the language barrier, but with the help of friends, families and teachers, Falk said her English improved and she started to find school easier.

She did well in her Grade 12 year at Highwood High, and will be crossing the stage to graduate with her classmates later this month. But the graduation ceremony will be just for the experience – her diploma won’t count in Sweden.

“I’ll have two more years of school there because we start a year later in Sweden and this year won’t count toward my school there,” said Falk.

Her time here wasn’t all about school. Falk said she had many opportunities to travel and see what Canada, and Alberta, have to offer. Her highlights included a 10-day hiking and camping trip and a week-long excursion to Yellowknife.

“We did ice fishing there and snowmobiling, and that was a very cool trip,” said Falk.

Pous Grau also went on the Rotary trips including the Yellowknife excursion, but her favourite was one designed just for her.

During the initial stages of exchanges, students are asked to compile a list of things they’d like to do while abroad, like a bucket list specific to their host country. Pous Grau wanted to travel to Prince Edward Island, where her mother had done an exchange 22 years earlier, though she didn’t think it would be possible to go so far while she was here.

“I couldn’t believe it when they told me I got to go to PEI in May, and I’m so grateful to the club for making it happen,” she said. “I met my mom’s host families, her counselor and her best friends from when she was there. It was an amazing experience.”

It was her mother who initially inspired her to take on the Rotary exchange, she said. She had always talked about it being the best thing she’d done in her youth and how beautiful Canada was.

Besides seeing the source of her mother’s stories, one of her favourite things about travelling to the east coast was getting a little taste of the ocean.

“We ate a lot of fish and that was amazing,” said Pous Grau. “I haven’t had the fresh fish in 10 months and I miss it.”

She hasn’t missed home too much in 10 months though, she said, which she found surprising after having a difficult time leaving home to begin with.

“Getting on the plane and leaving is the biggest challenge,” said Pous Grau. “You leave everything behind and you know you’ll be back, but it’s still very difficult.”

Now that she has just one month left in Okotoks, she said leaving here will be just as difficult. After bonding with three host families and making a lot of good friends, it will be harder to leave everyone behind not knowing when she might come back, she said.

Not only did she grow close with the parents, she adopted new siblings – two brothers in her first family, two sisters in the second family, and one sister in the last.

“These host families, they become like your real family, and I love them with all my heart,” said Pous Grau. “I always say before I had one sister, and now I have two brothers and four sisters.”

Though being away from home and leaving her new home have both challenged her emotionally, she said the experience is worth every minute, and she hopes to continue her relationships well into the future.

In the coming weeks, once Grade 10 exams have ended, Pous Grau wants to stick close to Okotoks and spend time with her families and friends before she heads back to Catalonia.

“I’ve done a lot of travelling already,” she said. “Right now I just want to soak this is in and enjoy my last few days with the people I’ve met, the people I’ve come to love.”

She said the year-long exchange has opened her mind and her heart, and changed her life.

“Home will never be home again, because for some part of you home will be somewhere else,” said Pous Grau. “You make a new life. Going home is good, but I wouldn’t change a minute of my time here.”