Learning Experiences Blog 4: Growing-Up

Learning Experiences: Blog 4

I have been lucky enough to grow up with dual citizenship in Italy from my dad’s side of the family and I have had countless opportunities to meet some incredible people through this citizenship. When I was younger, I had no idea what dual citizenship meant, or what crazy experiences I have gotten to be part of because of it. In my junior year of high school my family hosted an Italian boy from a small town in Italy called Manta. He stayed with us for 10 months and during those months I learned so much about Italian culture, ways of life and even learned some of the language. I thought that everyone had an experience like that, and I definitely took for granted a lot of my travels and learning experiences when I was younger. 

Today, I realize how lucky I am to have dual citizenship. Most people from my hometown don’t get to experience the world like I have been able to. Sometimes I wish I had grown-up sooner. My dual citizenship has taught me to put my dreams first, to be fearless in the pursuit of those dreams, and to never ever give up. 

My dad’s life story showed me that it doesn’t matter where you come from, it only matters where you put your priorities and whether or not you push yourself to the limits you know that you can ultimately surpass. If it wasn’t for my dual-citizenship I would have never been interested in learning a second language, wanting to travel the world, and I would never have even thought about teaching others Italian culture. 

This experience is one that I can say has changed me forever going forward because it showed me the incredible people who live across this world. The cultures are so intriguing, the people so curious about life and there are many incredibly brilliant minds that are full of ideas – ideas that contribute so much to the life of others. Some people never have experiences or even desires like this, and I owe all of that to the people who showed me what dual citizenship means. I only regret not realizing its importance sooner.

Comments

  1. williams.dan76February 17, 2020 at 1:11 PM

    learning about another culture is probably one of the most meaningful learning experiences of all. Thanks for writing it.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How's Quarantine Going?

Learning Experience Blog 7 I don’t know how I can express all the feelings I’m currently experiencing during this period of uncertainty. It feels like everything I’ve worked so hard for is sinking sand.  Just a week prior, I never imagined that all classes for senior year would be cancelled (online can never be the same); I never imagined being offered my dream job and not 24 hours later receiving a phone call that said they had to rescind my offer; I never imagined, weeks before graduation, that I wouldn’t have a plan. I’ve always had a plan. Now, I sit here alone in my apartment away from family to seemingly start over. I have two weeks to study for the GMAT, write graduate application essays and apply to graduate school in less than a month. Not only do I not feel prepared, I don’t know if I’ll be able to do it all. I’m afraid I’m going to go insane. I need people, I need interaction, I need to stop being overwhelmed.  Suddenly switching 15 hours of class t...
Read more

Final Reflection

Where do I begin? I have to say, this semester has taught me much more than a regular semester ever would. For starters, our laughter class has brought me so much joy and laughter – truly. I think I may miss this class more than all the others; I know the importance of laughing even when you may not feel up to it; I know the importance of making someone else smile – either by telling a joke or a simple compliment. We need to build each other up and although I’m certain we all know how important that is in everyday life, we realize how much of an impact it has on us all during hard times even more. I appreciate this class for allowing us to have a little fun with coronavirus – from writing limericks on the subject, to reading/watching coronavirus humor during class, to all of us being able to spend a little time with each other every week over zoom laughing at how much stress comes from being home with our families.  I can’t help but smile when thinking back to the begi...
Read more

My Dad, Tiger King, & MRI scans....Uncontrollable Laughter

Two words: Tiger King. Scratch that, add two more words: My dad.  Now, let’s just say my dad is not known for his love of television. In fact, he hates movies and most television shows…to give you some context, his idea of fun is connecting his laptop to our living room TV screen and pulling up x-rays and MRI scans and forcing the entire family to try and diagnose the patient.... Mind you, my dad is a radiologist for a living so of course he already knows what’s wrong with the patient. So, much to his amusement, he sits there with wine in one hand and teaches my brother and I how to read MRI’s and makes us battle each other to see who can correctly diagnose the patient first. He still can’t figure out why neither me or my brother chose the medical field as a career path. Imagine that?! Anyway back to Tiger King. This has become my dad’s new favorite show – of all time. I’m still unsure of how he found it, but regardless of how he did, I’ve never heard my dad laugh so hard ...
Read more