Dear Future Natalie,
At the time I started writing this letter, there were 30 days until I am on program with AFS. It has also been over a year since I decided to study abroad and I started actively pursuing my goal. When I told my mom that I wanted to study abroad, the answer was initially negative. I knew in my heart that I wanted to go to France, and I was already telling people "when I go to France..." When I found out that the only way possible for me to study abroad was to win a scholarship, I quit telling people about it. I wasn't very confident, even though I wrote wonderful essays. I didn't want the embarrassment of having to tell people that I couldn't go. When Deb Felak, at my interview, told me how many kid were applying, I started crying. She told me that 60 kids were interested, and 30 would get the scholarship. Even though those odds are absolutely amazing compared to ones I could encounter for college scholarships, I was still afraid that my dream could be ripped out from under me at any second. Luckily, my dream was not ripped out from under me. I will be boarding a plane on September 5th and flying to France. I get to meet my wonderful host family, who you surely know very well.
Now, dearest future Natalie, you have come back from France. I'm sure you have changed in more ways that I can even imagine.
I hope you are more independent. I know, I am very independent to begin with, but I still need approval before making decisions. I hope you have learned not to get caught up with simple decisions. I hope that you are more spontaneous. I hope that one time during the year, you looked at the menu and picked something random. Something that you have absolutely no idea what it is, but you will be surprised. It may be pleasant, it may be objectionable, but you'll live.
I hope that you are fluent in French. That is my biggest hope for you. I want you to be able to speak to anyone in French without fear. You surely will have made mistakes with your French grammar, but perfection isn't my goal. Just as my English will never be perfect, my French will never be perfect. There will always be a verb that I conjugate wrong or a word that I mispronounce, no matter what. Future Natalie, you will have realized that this is okay. I know it to be true now, but my face still becomes bright red every time I make an error.
Have you had a great time and used every opportunity you could? If you haven't, I'm honestly disappointed in you. You were in France, silly! Do something!
Have you come up with an occupation where you can use your French skills and your other skills?
What do you know about the world that you didn't know before?
Have you offered the appropriate amount of thanks to Jenny and Mike Messner for their selfless funding of the very scholarship that sent you over?
Will you keep in contact with your host family? I really hope that you do. I adore them so far. Do you want to move to France? Have you made any decisions about your career or college?
When you return from France, I expect you to write back to me.
Until later,
-Natalie Alyssa Souders
August 26, 2013
Monday, August 26, 2013
Sitting, Waiting, Wishing
Right now, there are 9 days left until I leave for France. Nine days. Neuf jours. Neuve días. Today is the first day of school for all of my friends. While it saddens me a little to know that they are starting something new without me, it also excites me, as this means my adventure is right around the corner.
I did a little bit of packing. I went through my closet and get out the things I want to bring. Only clothes that I like are coming to France. I then army rolled them and put them in a suitcase. I am keeping a running list of everything that goes in and comes out of the suitcase. When I weighed the suitcase, it only weighed 20 pounds. Mind you, I haven't yet packed my athletic clothes, shoes, or electronic devices, but the weight limit is a lot easier to meet than I had originally thought.
As for the title, it is the title of a song by Jack Johnson. I enjoy Jack Johnson, so there will likely be more quotes from him to come. If you would like to know what I'm talking about, a lyric video for "Sitting, Waiting, Wishing" is below.
I did a little bit of packing. I went through my closet and get out the things I want to bring. Only clothes that I like are coming to France. I then army rolled them and put them in a suitcase. I am keeping a running list of everything that goes in and comes out of the suitcase. When I weighed the suitcase, it only weighed 20 pounds. Mind you, I haven't yet packed my athletic clothes, shoes, or electronic devices, but the weight limit is a lot easier to meet than I had originally thought.
As for the title, it is the title of a song by Jack Johnson. I enjoy Jack Johnson, so there will likely be more quotes from him to come. If you would like to know what I'm talking about, a lyric video for "Sitting, Waiting, Wishing" is below.
Until We Meet Again
There are ten days left until I am on program with AFS. While I know that I am leaving, it still seems far away.
Two days ago, my lovely best friend, Alexa (along with her equally lovely mother, Karen), threw a surprise "Bon Voyage" party for me! It was the absolute sweetest thing someone has ever done for me. It was great to see my best friends all together before I leave for France. My other best friend, Brynne, made me a cake, and it was absolutely adorable. The cake was striped two different colors of pink, and it had an Eiffel Tower shaped cookie on top. Alexa strung lights around her dining room "for ambiance," in her own words.
Alexa got me a shirt with a great pun on it. Enjoy the following pictures.
Two days ago, my lovely best friend, Alexa (along with her equally lovely mother, Karen), threw a surprise "Bon Voyage" party for me! It was the absolute sweetest thing someone has ever done for me. It was great to see my best friends all together before I leave for France. My other best friend, Brynne, made me a cake, and it was absolutely adorable. The cake was striped two different colors of pink, and it had an Eiffel Tower shaped cookie on top. Alexa strung lights around her dining room "for ambiance," in her own words.
Alexa got me a shirt with a great pun on it. Enjoy the following pictures.
Alexa also got me socks with Eiffel Towers on them and a Tinker Bell blanket to remember her by.
I will miss all of my friends from Middletown. I love you all.
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Speedwell Picnic
This Sunday, I was given the honor of attending a picnic. As it may seem strange to refer to attending a picnic as an honor, this picnic is held yearly by the Speedwell Foundation for the recipients of the Speedwell Scholarship. All of the students who have been given the Speedwell Scholarship in the past and the students who have been awarded the scholarship and have not yet gone abroad are invited to attend.
Choosing where to sit was a process in itself! First, you had to find a table with the flag of the country you will study or have studied abroad in. This was not very difficult, as there were multiple tables with French flags on them. My family entire family of five was in attendance, which made sitting with other kids going to France and returnees very difficult, as each table had eight chairs. My mother wanted me to sit with the family, but I decided that I could profit more from the experience if I talked to other kids, instead of just my family, so I sat apart from them. At my table sat Aidan, two returnees from France, an exchange student from France, a friend of a returnee, the mom of a returnee, the president of AFS, and me.
Yes, you read that correctly. The president of the entire organization of AFS had decided that the Speedwell Scholarship winners' picnic was very important, and he sat at my table. Getting to know the president of AFS makes me love the organization even more. Everybody that I have met through AFS has been kind, relatable, and willing to talk about their experiences, from the volunteers to the president.
We ate. We talked. Nothing too radical happened at the picnic.
We took some group pictures. The first picture shown is all the Speedwell Scholarship winners from any year that were at the picnic. The second picture is the 2013 class of Speedwell recipients.
I got to meet the couple that granted my wish. These two people, Jenny and Mike Messner are the wonderful people behind the Speedwell Scholarship. Out of their own generosity, they have paid for my AFS tuition, meaning that I get to study abroad with no cost to me. I will always be grateful to the Messners! Thanks so much to the Speedwell Foundation for investing in the future of the world with the gift of studying abroad.
I went up to Jenny Messner and thanked her for allowing me to have the chance to study abroad. She asked me why I wanted to study abroad, and when I told her, she remarked, "You are like the poster child for AFS!" For someone as important as Jenny Messner to tell me this holds a lot of sentimentality to me.
À la prochaine!
-Natalie
Choosing where to sit was a process in itself! First, you had to find a table with the flag of the country you will study or have studied abroad in. This was not very difficult, as there were multiple tables with French flags on them. My family entire family of five was in attendance, which made sitting with other kids going to France and returnees very difficult, as each table had eight chairs. My mother wanted me to sit with the family, but I decided that I could profit more from the experience if I talked to other kids, instead of just my family, so I sat apart from them. At my table sat Aidan, two returnees from France, an exchange student from France, a friend of a returnee, the mom of a returnee, the president of AFS, and me.
Yes, you read that correctly. The president of the entire organization of AFS had decided that the Speedwell Scholarship winners' picnic was very important, and he sat at my table. Getting to know the president of AFS makes me love the organization even more. Everybody that I have met through AFS has been kind, relatable, and willing to talk about their experiences, from the volunteers to the president.
We ate. We talked. Nothing too radical happened at the picnic.
We took some group pictures. The first picture shown is all the Speedwell Scholarship winners from any year that were at the picnic. The second picture is the 2013 class of Speedwell recipients.
I got to meet the couple that granted my wish. These two people, Jenny and Mike Messner are the wonderful people behind the Speedwell Scholarship. Out of their own generosity, they have paid for my AFS tuition, meaning that I get to study abroad with no cost to me. I will always be grateful to the Messners! Thanks so much to the Speedwell Foundation for investing in the future of the world with the gift of studying abroad.
 |
| Me with Jenny and Mike Messner. I don't know how to properly string my gratitude into a sentence. |
À la prochaine!
-Natalie
Saturday, August 3, 2013
Time with Ombline!
Our exchange student, Ombline, just left our house today, and we miss her very much. Ombline's English is very good; she has been learning English since she was 7 years old, and improved every day!
The day Ombline arrived was pretty low-key. We just hung out around my house and talked. Then we drove around my small town, Middletown. We pointed out the schools, and I explained that high school is similar to "lycée," middle school is similar to "collège," and elementary school is for the little children. I pointed out the pool, my grandparents' houses, and a mini market that is called Souders, because that is our last name, too, but we have nothing to do with the mini market.
The next day, we went to Hershey's Chocolate World. Ombline had never heard of Hershey's Chocolate. We live about 15 minutes away from Chocolate World, so I had been there countless times as a kid, and I will take the kids I babysit to Chocolate World because it's entertaining and the ride that pretends to give you a tour of the chocolate factory is free, and so is parking if you stay for less than three hours! On our drive to Chocolate World, we saw people park their car on the side of the road and take a picture with the sign pictured to the right. Because I have lived so close to Hershey for my entire life, I always forget that it is a tourist destination.
When we walked into the doors of Chocolate World, we immediately smelled the chocolate. That smell has become rather comforting to me. We walked to the beginning of the ride. The moving floor, which I have become so accustomed to walking on from visiting Chocolate World so often tripped up people from out of state. We sat in the cars of the ride, and Ombline and I sat in the front row so that we could hear better.
The ride at Chocolate World outlines the process of how Hershey's Chocolate is made, from the selection of the cocoa beans to the wrapping the candy bar. I, personally, get the most amusement from the cows! At various points throughout the ride, there are three cows, Gabby, Harmony, and Olympia, who sing a repetitive song about milk and Hershey's Chocolate. Ombline and I couldn't help but giggle!
In that same day, we went shopping at the Hershey Outlets, which I'm sure are called by another name, but I think Hershey Outlets sounds much better. Ombline told my mom and I that brands that are popular in the United States, such as Hollister and Aéropostle, are also very popular in France.
The next two days were spent swimming- one day at my grandparents' pool, and the other at the Middletown Swim Club. We took these pictures at the Swim Club.
We spent a day in Harrisburg. First we went to Barnes and Noble to get me a pocket dictionary. It is very thorough, unlike my previous small dictionary, which didn't have the verb "cook," or the word "tuna."
We saw the Capitol Building, and took pictures on two different staircases. I, being in Youth & Government, knew my way and showed my mom and Ombline around. Of course, I didn't know any of the ever-so-valuable information about where the marble was from, but I could tell about rooms only the Youth & Government kids, and well, the real government, had been allowed to enter. Then we went to the State Museum and walked around. No matter how many times I go through the State Museum, the exhibit about the Native Americans that has the life-size sculptures freaks me out!
Then we had my birthday party! A lot of my friends were there. We took a lot of pictures, but I'm only going to put up this one. It is a picture of me and my friends doing an imitation of the High School Musical jump into the pool. I am the first one on the left, and Ombline is the second one in from the right. We took far too many High School Musical jump pictures, but it was fun!
Because I don't like making decisions, when my mom asked me what food I wanted to have, the only things I could say were, "Iced tea, bruschetta, and some sort of cake." Since one cannot have an entire party on those alone, I let my grandparents make some creative decisions.
The cake was from Pennsylvania Bakery, and it was called a "raspberry torte." It wasn't very extravagant, but it tasted very, very good! My grandma picked the cake and I made absolutely no decisions about it, and she did a very good job! See for yourself!
The next day was my little cousin's birthday party. She turned ten years old and her name is Olivia. Ombline and I made some Oreo cupcakes to eat at the party. Olivia asked Ombline and me to play tag with her, so we did. The only catch is that we played tag in the dark, and Olivia decided that the person who was "it" had to wear a goofy head light. I haven't played tag since I was little, so this was definitely fun for me.
A few days later, we took a trip to HersheyPark. When you buy an admission ticket to HersheyPark, you also get a two and a half hour preview the night before where you can go to the park. We rode all of the rollercoasters, minus one. Ombline and I both like rollercoasters, so the only reason we didn't get to ride that one rollercoaster was because it was pouring rain! At around four o'clock in the afternoon, it started raining. Since we were enjoying ourselves, Ombline and I decided to try to wait out the storm. In the rain, we couldn't ride any rides, so we ran around, watched karaoke, and goofed off until 9 o'clock. Since the park closes at 10, we decided that it was time to quit. I called my mom to pick us up, and we ran through the rain to get there.
We took off our flip-flops so that we could run without them falling off and decided to wait under the ticket booths, and everything was fine for about ten minutes, but in fifteen seconds, our safe area went from dry to covered with three inches of water, and the ticket booths were flooding. Trashcans were being lifted by the water and floating down hills. Outdoor staircases looked like waterfalls. Ombline and I were giggling like little girls. My parents and my brothers came to get us, and we went to a restaurant, even though we were soaked!
We went shopping at King of Prussia one day. My grandparents drove us down and dropped us off, and we shopped for hours. I only got a dress and a sweater for H&M, but Ombline got things from Hollister, Aéropostle, Abercrombie, Forever 21... and maybe more! In Forever 21, we decided try on the worst outfit we could come up with. I would post a picture, but it would make excellent blackmail material. We found studded leather jackets that looked dangerous, black and white striped pants that were mostly cut out around the knee, and a superhero tee-shirt.
We went Baltimore, Maryland one day. We went out to eat, to an aquarium, and we watched a wonderful street performer. In the aquarium, my mom asked me if it would be inappropriate to ask for butter to go with the fish. YES, MOTHER, IT WOULD BE! There isn't much to say about these pictures.
We also took a trip to Washington, DC. First, we had to go to my visa appointment at the French Consulat. In English, it is spelled "consulate," but it's French, so I'm spelling it the French way.
The day Ombline arrived was pretty low-key. We just hung out around my house and talked. Then we drove around my small town, Middletown. We pointed out the schools, and I explained that high school is similar to "lycée," middle school is similar to "collège," and elementary school is for the little children. I pointed out the pool, my grandparents' houses, and a mini market that is called Souders, because that is our last name, too, but we have nothing to do with the mini market.
The next day, we went to Hershey's Chocolate World. Ombline had never heard of Hershey's Chocolate. We live about 15 minutes away from Chocolate World, so I had been there countless times as a kid, and I will take the kids I babysit to Chocolate World because it's entertaining and the ride that pretends to give you a tour of the chocolate factory is free, and so is parking if you stay for less than three hours! On our drive to Chocolate World, we saw people park their car on the side of the road and take a picture with the sign pictured to the right. Because I have lived so close to Hershey for my entire life, I always forget that it is a tourist destination. 
When we walked into the doors of Chocolate World, we immediately smelled the chocolate. That smell has become rather comforting to me. We walked to the beginning of the ride. The moving floor, which I have become so accustomed to walking on from visiting Chocolate World so often tripped up people from out of state. We sat in the cars of the ride, and Ombline and I sat in the front row so that we could hear better.
The ride at Chocolate World outlines the process of how Hershey's Chocolate is made, from the selection of the cocoa beans to the wrapping the candy bar. I, personally, get the most amusement from the cows! At various points throughout the ride, there are three cows, Gabby, Harmony, and Olympia, who sing a repetitive song about milk and Hershey's Chocolate. Ombline and I couldn't help but giggle!
In that same day, we went shopping at the Hershey Outlets, which I'm sure are called by another name, but I think Hershey Outlets sounds much better. Ombline told my mom and I that brands that are popular in the United States, such as Hollister and Aéropostle, are also very popular in France.
 |
| Ombline |
 |
| Moi |
We spent a day in Harrisburg. First we went to Barnes and Noble to get me a pocket dictionary. It is very thorough, unlike my previous small dictionary, which didn't have the verb "cook," or the word "tuna."
Because I don't like making decisions, when my mom asked me what food I wanted to have, the only things I could say were, "Iced tea, bruschetta, and some sort of cake." Since one cannot have an entire party on those alone, I let my grandparents make some creative decisions. The cake was from Pennsylvania Bakery, and it was called a "raspberry torte." It wasn't very extravagant, but it tasted very, very good! My grandma picked the cake and I made absolutely no decisions about it, and she did a very good job! See for yourself!
The next day was my little cousin's birthday party. She turned ten years old and her name is Olivia. Ombline and I made some Oreo cupcakes to eat at the party. Olivia asked Ombline and me to play tag with her, so we did. The only catch is that we played tag in the dark, and Olivia decided that the person who was "it" had to wear a goofy head light. I haven't played tag since I was little, so this was definitely fun for me.
A few days later, we took a trip to HersheyPark. When you buy an admission ticket to HersheyPark, you also get a two and a half hour preview the night before where you can go to the park. We rode all of the rollercoasters, minus one. Ombline and I both like rollercoasters, so the only reason we didn't get to ride that one rollercoaster was because it was pouring rain! At around four o'clock in the afternoon, it started raining. Since we were enjoying ourselves, Ombline and I decided to try to wait out the storm. In the rain, we couldn't ride any rides, so we ran around, watched karaoke, and goofed off until 9 o'clock. Since the park closes at 10, we decided that it was time to quit. I called my mom to pick us up, and we ran through the rain to get there.
We took off our flip-flops so that we could run without them falling off and decided to wait under the ticket booths, and everything was fine for about ten minutes, but in fifteen seconds, our safe area went from dry to covered with three inches of water, and the ticket booths were flooding. Trashcans were being lifted by the water and floating down hills. Outdoor staircases looked like waterfalls. Ombline and I were giggling like little girls. My parents and my brothers came to get us, and we went to a restaurant, even though we were soaked!
We went shopping at King of Prussia one day. My grandparents drove us down and dropped us off, and we shopped for hours. I only got a dress and a sweater for H&M, but Ombline got things from Hollister, Aéropostle, Abercrombie, Forever 21... and maybe more! In Forever 21, we decided try on the worst outfit we could come up with. I would post a picture, but it would make excellent blackmail material. We found studded leather jackets that looked dangerous, black and white striped pants that were mostly cut out around the knee, and a superhero tee-shirt.
We went Baltimore, Maryland one day. We went out to eat, to an aquarium, and we watched a wonderful street performer. In the aquarium, my mom asked me if it would be inappropriate to ask for butter to go with the fish. YES, MOTHER, IT WOULD BE! There isn't much to say about these pictures.
Posing in front of inner harbor
The restaurant where we ate lunch
Jonathan Burns, one of the best street performers in existence! His show is called Flexible Comedy.
A random picture we took inside the aquarium
After the 4-D movie
I'm not sure what we're doing, but we look adorable!
One day, Ombline and I went to Alexa's house. Alexa is one of my best friends in the entire world.
From left to right: Alexa, Zoey (Alexa's little sister), Natalie (me), Ombline
Ombline and me being important with out little badges!
The appointment went very well, and then we went off to hit the city!
The White House, or La Maison Blanche
Washington Monument (under construction due to an earchquake)
The US Capitol Building
Secret Service agents on the roof of a building
Ombline and me in front of the White House. Don't ask why I am still wearing a pencil skirt.
Washington Monument under construction
When It was time for Ombline to leave, we were all very sad. It was nice to have another person in the house, especially for me, because I don't have a sister. Ombline will be going to college in Lille, so you'll surely hear about our adventures again during my year abroad, since she is so close. Instead of saying "Goodbye" to Ombline, I told her, "See you soon." To me, goodbye sounds final, but see you soon implies that I care enough to want to see you again.
With that,
See you soon!
-Natalie
(The three pictures of Hershey's Chocolate World and the one picture of the Pennsylvania State Capitol Building do not belong to me. Their rights belong to their respective owners.)
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