Photo Credit: Knoxville Journal-Express

This article was originally published in the Knoxville Journal-Express. YES student, Sameer Tahir (YES 2017-2018, Pakistan, hosted by CIEE in Des Moines, IA), talks about his experience in the U.S. For the original article, please follow this link. 

For all his lofty goals, Pakistani exchange student Sameer Tahir has his feet firmly on the ground in Knoxville.

He dreams of becoming a pilot in Pakistan’s Air Force, but his first time in the air was a five-flight marathon this summer from his hometown of Islamabad to Des Moines.

Tahir, 16, has hit the ground running at Knoxville High School and around town.

You’ll find him selling popcorn at football games or at the movie theater, or just helping out around his host family’s church. It’s all about meeting people, Tahir said.

“I’m basically over here to help people and to represent my culture,” he said. “I am here to make new friends.”

That began at New Journey Church, where his host parents, Laurie and Bill McGarry, worship. Volunteering at church might not seem like much of a stretch, and it’s not for Tahir. Even though he’s a Muslim.

“I just go there to meet new people and learn how they worship. I volunteer so they get to know me,” he said. “They consider me as their own friend.”

Tahir said he hasn’t experienced any discrimination in Knoxville. His approach echoes what Christians call the Golden Rule.

“Islam says ‘Give respect and get respect,”’ he said. “If I offer help, in response, you’ll definitely treat me in the same way. That way you can build a good relationship with people.

“I’m proud to be Muslim and proud to be interacting with people of different religions and different cultures.”

His journey from Pakistan began with a teacher who inspired him to apply for the Youth Exchange and Study Program, which is overseen by the U.S. Department of State. There is no telling where his sense of adventure will take him, he said.

For example, he’s confident that his soccer skills will help him make the KHS varsity team next spring. But he also wants to try out for basketball.

“I know how to shoot baskets,” he said, “but I don’t know the rules!”

Extracurriculars aren’t a big part of Tahir’s routine back in Pakistan. He goes to school during the daytime, then takes advanced studies at an evening academy. He is a strong student back home, having placed 10th among all sophomores in Pakistan in a test last year. But the YES program soon will put him in the role of teacher.

He’ll take part in International Education Week, Nov. 13-17, teaching in his KHS history class and at his church. He’s said he’s open to giving presentations to other groups and spreading culture however he can.

Tahir said he hoped to form a club at KHS to teach cricket, a sport that Pakistan is crazy about.

“Only I don’t have the stuff,” he said.

He said he’s open to spending some of his own money on equipment if a donor came forward to help.

“Maybe I could make a good team from Knoxville when I leave,” he said with a smile.

Whatever his legacy is, it will come back to making friends, Tahir said. That comes with being open to anything and anyone.

“I hope to make a lot of best friends for life,” he said. “The only key to success is to be open. to discuss anything. This helps (people) to know you are open. You are not hiding anything from them.”

Tahir said he hopes to return to the United States some day. If his pilot dream doesn’t work out, he said he’ll come back to study chemical engineering, perhaps at the University of Iowa.

And when Tahir goes home after this school year, what will he unpack in Pakistan?

He hopes to teach English language workshops back home. He also is studying Spanish here and hopes to start a Spanish club there.

“Above all, though, I’m just looking forward to making good relationships forever,” he said.

As a 16 year old who’s 7,000 miles away from home, he misses his family and his life there. His love of his homeland might also strike a chord with Americans.

As he poses for a photo on a windy afternoon, he carefully sets a folded Pakistani flag on a bench outside the high school. A gust of wind tosses it to the ground. Tahir hustles after the flag, snatches it up, and gives it a quick, respectful kiss.