Full Circle
When I was a junior in high school I went on a trip that would literally change the trajectory of my life. It was my first trip out of the country, and off the continent. And it wasn’t just a touristy, go-see-some-sights kinda trip, it was a go-live-with-a-family-of-complete-strangers-who-don’t-speak-the-same-language-as-you kinda trip. And what a trip it was.
Because of that trip I ended up studying abroad in college. The town my university partnered with happened to be a 90-minute train ride from the town I lived in on my first trip, which meant I had a built-in family to escape to when I needed something familiar, or a home-cooked meal, or some laundry done.
Because of that study abroad experience, I ended up completing the Camino de Santiago. The same camino on which I met a boy from Barcelona.
And because of doing that camino and meeting that boy, I ended up living in Barcelona for a few years, and spending every summer there since.
During all that time I was struggling to figure out what to do with my life. I honestly had no idea what I wanted. I had continued taking Spanish in college, and ended up majoring in it simply because I enjoyed it, and it was one of the few classes I left feeling like I had an actual, real-life, useful skill.
When I moved to Spain I worked as a personal assistant to an architect, but also somehow fell into teaching private English lessons. This reignited my love of language and I ended up back in the states, getting my masters so I could become a Spanish teacher. I had decided I wanted to be like my favorite Spanish teacher in high school, Julie – the one I left the country with for the very first time – and teach students to love language, and other cultures, and travel.
I taught for a few years and quickly decided it was not for me. Teaching is hard. It is more paperwork, and bureaucracy, and meetings than actual teaching. It is nights and weekends filled with homework – something I realized was unfortunately not just for students. And it is constant thanklessness, and harassment, and quite frankly, abuse. So I quit, and I travelled the world.
And then Covid hit and I was grounded in Wichita, and my friend asked me to come substitute at the school she worked at; the school that also happened to be where Julie worked. And so, one thing led to another, and I was back in the classroom, with my mentor as my colleague.
Julie quickly started dreaming up a trip to Spain for our students, but we kept getting thwarted by the pandemic. Not this year though. On March 9th we took off for Spain: me, Julie, her husband, Kelly - who also went on the trip I took in high school, and 21 students. It was such a strange, wonderful moment being on the other side of that trip - 20 years ago Julie was comforting and reassuring my mom in the airport, and suddenly there I was, doing the same for all my students’ parents.
We spent 24 hours getting to our destination, and then immediately boarded a bus for Segovia where we saw the Alcazar castle, the Roman aqueducts, and a cathedral. I was quickly reminded of the awe and wonder I felt seeing those sights in high school because they were still just as awesome and wonderful - so many colors, and textures, and stunning views.
The following day we saw the Almudena cathedral, went to the Royal Palace (the king was there!), went through the Reina Sofia art museum, saw a flamenco show, and ate churros in Puerta del Sol. During said churro eating, one of our students struck up conversation with the Spanish guy sitting next to him and they ended up having a beautiful discussion about cultural and political differences - all in Spanish. We ended up having him take a photo with our whole group (the guy in the red jacket below), and some even exchanged social media handles. I was so proud I literally started crying as we left the plaza for our next destination and couldn’t stop thinking about how amazing these students of mine are. They were doing it. They were out there experiencing the world, getting out of their comfort zones, using skills I helped foster in them, expanding their horizons more than they could imagine. It was beautiful.
The next day we left for Logroño, where they were doing their family stays. Though it was not the same town I did mine in, I had been to Logroño before, and it holds a special place in my heart. The small town of about 150,000 is one of the stops on the Camino de Santiago, and I had walked through that town 14 years prior. It was my very favorite experience on the camino because of the people I met in that town - Yago was one of those people - and the amazing food and bar hopping we did there. Nostalgia washed over me at every turn, in the best possible way; so many happy, unforgettable memories there.
As the kids prepared to get off the bus to go live with their new Spanish families, they were petrified with fear. It was a feeling I could relate to exactly, and was reminded of how terrified I was in their shoes 20 years prior. I did my best to reassure them they would love it and come back changed people, and then I cried as I video recorded them being embraced by their new moms and dads and siblings. (They dubbed me Facebook Mom because I constantly had my phone in their faces recording them because I’m making a video of the trip for them. They were extremely annoyed with me which naturally, brought me great joy.)
The next five days I got to traipse around La Rioja region of Spain with my co-workers, and friend, Monika, who made the trip from Barcelona. Each day we would randomly cross paths with a student out with their family, and it was so fun!
One of the days we went to the school the kids were attending to watch them teach a cheerleading and dodge ball workshop to the Spanish students, and another day we went to meet a couple from Kansas who is now Insta-famous in Logroño for being…a couple from Kansas… @smithsinspain are legit super famous in Spain now, and they took time out of their celebrity lives to come talk to our students about cultural differences between Kansas and Spain. I also enjoyed overhearing my students’ observations to each other throughout the trip, “I haven’t seen a single fat person - like at all!”… “I just love the bar culture here, they go to the bars everyday and just chill - not for alcohol or anything, just coffee or whatever, it’s so relaxing!” … “Oh my gosh the streets are so clean here!” … all the things I remember thinking on my trip.
Sunday we headed back to Madrid, and as expected, it was an extremely tearful goodbye to all the families. It was so special seeing all the bonds they had created. I’m still amazed at how perfectly the contact in Spain placed each of our students with their Spanish equivalents without even knowing them - pure magic.
Back in Madrid we went to the world famous Prado art museum where I completely lost my shit as PAUL EFFING RUDD meandered by, a mere 4 feet away. Still kicking myself that I was in such complete shock that I didn’t ask him to take a photo with us - I’m 100% positive that with his Kansas ties he totally would have. What a colossal fail on my part.
After a final dinner in Madrid and a short 1 hour nap, we were back at the airport at 3am for another 24 hour trip. We all made it back safe and sound, with our hearts and minds changed.
I am forever grateful that I was able to make that trip happen for myself as a student in high school, and am forever humbled that I got the opportunity to do it as a teacher for such a great group of students. It was so special returning to the original sights in Spain that made me fall in love with the country; made even more special getting to do it alongside the people who instilled my love of language and travel in the first place. Such a surreal moment completing the circle of student to teacher.
While I was in Spain, my family was having a reunion in Hays, Kansas. When I was 10 years old they built the Sternberg Museum, and as part of their grand opening they buried a time capsule, in which anyone who wished could submit a letter and/or photos. My gram had us all contribute something, and so last week my family retrieved their submissions. My mom read her letter aloud to me the other day, and it seemed so apropos of all I’d just lived with my students in Spain. She definitely predicted the not making a lot of money part; I hope the part about touching hearts and lives is equally as accurate <3.
This year has been such a year of growth for me, and I have been so happy. I’m truly enjoying my students and my time with them, and feel so lucky to get to work with these zany, amazing young people. I hope this was the first of many trips to Spain together.
