When YES alumni return home, they bring with lessons and memories that stick with them for a lifetime. The impacts they have on their host communities, and the growth they made in their own lives can sometimes be expresses in a simple list of what they miss. One YES alumna shared that list with us as part of our special 15th anniversary celebrations.

By: Imane Majid (YES 2014 - 2015, Morocco, hosted by ASSE in College Station, TX)

I miss the donuts my host mom would wake up so early to bring every morning.

I miss having a few scratches here and there from playing with our cat.

I miss the sweet taste of Blue Bell ice cream while picturing blue bonnets in my mind.

I miss witnessing my classmates do the Pledge of Allegiance every morning during first period.

I miss wearing my school ID and proudly call myself a Tiger.

I miss sitting on the couch doing nothing and staring at the glass walls overlooking the green backyard.

I miss having to ask my friends for rides to hangouts and listen to their playlists while we happily jam our way through our cultural differences.

I miss being asked exquisite questions about Morocco and having to keep a serious face when answering them.

I miss having to come up with new community service ideas.

I miss hearing the sound of rain falling on the roof making a soft and unbalanced symphony.

I miss feeling foreign and having to look up words and expressions I wasn’t familiar with.

I miss feeling the love and spirituality in the air during Sunday morning’s church service.

I miss having to keep quiet at home at certain times because my host dad had to work.

I miss struggling with math homework because I wasn’t used to it in English.

I miss delivering presentations about my culture and my experience as a YES exchange student.

I miss singing carols with my Interact club members to lighten up people’s Christmas Eve.

I miss trying hard to communicate with my Spanish-speaking classmates even though I couldn’t speak any.

I miss being faced with prejudice towards my faith but change those views and break stereotypes. 

I miss hearing my fellow YES students share their experiences on Facebook and get support from each other. 

I miss spending hours learning about my own country to share pieces of it with Americans. 

I miss not wearing enough or wearing too many layers of clothes because the weather is so moody and unusual for me. 

I miss being in the same room with people from diverse backgrounds, nationalities, beliefs, and opinions. 

I miss hearing the school’s bell even though I used to find it a bit annoying.

 I miss a lot of things I once found ordinary.

I miss being a YES exchange student.