What Happened Next . . .

        Last week I told you that my deciding to study abroad was quick, and happened within a day. I just so happened to look upon some AFS papers, and they changed my life. I signed up that night - it was a Monday, and my application was due on Friday at midnight. Could you imagine changing your life at a moments notice?

        For those who have never experienced the "application process" let me enlighten you. It is the trickiest, longest process a teenager will ever go through. I am almost sure it is more intense than sending college applications! (Even though I have not done that yet, oh well!)

        So, you have different sections to complete. First you need to fill out an online paper about yourself and family. This one is all personal and remotely easy. The second paper is also fairly easy, it's your placement paper. Also your parents need to complete many consent forms so you can go...

        Personal I think that the application process was made difficult for myself, because of medical papers. They gave us three that a doctor had to fill out, so when we found out about them, we basically had to beg our doctor to let us see him as soon as possible! 

        Other important docs came from my high school. Transcripts that needed the school seal, letters of recommendation, my current class list. Best part was seeing what my teachers had to say about me. :) Thank you to my awesome French teacher who helped me fall in love with languages! I never would have studied abroad without you! Also thank you Mr. Sassin, you helped me learn what other teachers never had the will to teach properly, Math! It is a tricky subject, but now I excel because you did your job like no other!

        Now there are many other papers we filled out, but the passport papers were probably the most important! Really you can't travel almost anywhere without a passport! I literally received mine sometime in May, so I was a bit late with that.....  This sums up my application process! Even though after a week of cramming in the application, I was almost sure I forgot something! 

        Now if you did read all the way down here, thank you! I am normally not this wordy, but I feel the need to explain what and how AFS changed my life. And how it can change yours; by studying abroad, hosting, donating, volunteering (any really!)

        So the next tricky part of studying abroad was getting the thousands of dollars, over 14 thousand ..... I could not do it alone, I was not crazy! So I signed up for "The Speedwell Scholarship" What I would have done to have 14 grand to do it on my own, funny thing is, now my sister wants to study abroad too! Good luck to you baby sis! Love ya!

        I spent those nights from Monday to Friday multitasking, because I had 4 amazing essays to write so they could pick me to win. I also had other teens like me, wanting that same scholarship. So they had to be good. Even better than good, they had to be breathtakingly amazing! I of course tried my best, and crossed my fingers the entire time! Man was I nervous about submitting them, I was never a good writer. (Emphasis on the blog, lol!

        One of the topics was so new to me, I had NO IDEA how to answer. It was something like, "How do you think an AFS student will represent a ambassador of the world while abroad and back in the USA." I saved this one till last, and got done about an hour before it was due on Friday at midnight. (I could probably answer this one better if I had a second chance, man in a few months you learn a lot. Not just about yourself, but about the world! Try it one time)

        Anyway long story short, I sent my application in on time. Yet I still had to wait for ever to see if I won! It was annoying in school, everyone wanted to know.... If you remember high school, kids want to know the biggest gossip right away. I was asked very often about if I won, where I was going and so on. (I had a list of prepared answers) Funny thing is, everyone wanted to talk about it then, when it was fresh gossip. When I had nothing new to tell them. Now about a month before I leave, people don't care as much, they don't want to jump for joy like I want to. Even if this experience just keeps getting better for me.

        Every AFS blogger has a few of these blogs, where they are ridiculously long, ;) but useful and fun to read *hopefully*! If you want to know more about my beginning, it didn't end here. It really only began by pressing the "turn in" button! Believe me when I say, nothing really ends, you're just led down a different pathway than the beginning one!!!!!!!

Till my next blog ~ XOXO Brystal ~