Posted on

Siblings and Host Siblings: Worlds Collide II

by Mikel, Tufts 1+4 Participant
During my two experiences living with host-families, first in Ecuador, and then in Spain, I have had amazing luck with my host-families, making my experiences living abroad not only something that helped me develop as a person, but also the opportunity to make life-long relationships with truly extraordinary people.
In Spain, my host-family was beyond generous and hospitable, introducing me to extended family and friends throughout my 9 months, especially during family visits to Sevilla. Throughout the 9 months I made long-lasting relationships that formed my time in Spain and continue to impact my life.
In both my experiences living with a host-family I have been able to introduce my real family to my host-families, creating a bond not only between me and my host-family but between my family and my host-families. With my host-family in Spain, this has provided a great opportunity for my 14 year old brother Andres, and my nearly 14 year old host-brother, also named Andres.
The summer following my time in Spain, my host brother came to the US to spend his summer practicing English with my brother. Both Andres’ had a great experience, and this summer this unique exchange continues. For the first half of the summer, Spanish Andres will return to the US, and will fly back to Spain accompanied by my brother, who will spend the second half of the summer with my host-family during their summer vacations. This experience allows my brother to improve his Spanish, my host-brother to improve his English, all in a culturally immersive experience between two families who have come to know and trust each other with their 14 year old sons.
This amazing experience, which most 14 year old’s do not have, is product of my host families adventure in being a host-family, in the relationship that this has caused my family and my host-family to have, and the luck of having two 14 year old boys who both have something to gain from this experience, and who have both made an international friend in the meanwhile. For me, this exchange between my brothers provides a sense of both jealousy and excitement for my brothers. It is amazing that a program like 1+4 has not only provided me with a formative experience but has also given way to a live-forming opportunity for both my family and my host-family.
Posted on

My 1+4 Story: Evan

by Evan, Tufts 1+4 Participant

The beginning of college can be a stressful time for many people. After months of anticipation, you are abruptly thrown into a new environment and expected to make friends, some of whom will supposedly last you your whole life. This period of stress can last a week for some, and months for others. In my high school grade, there was one other girl going to Tufts, which was a social luxury that not all Tufts students have, however, I did not know her very well and figured that I would be mostly on my own making new friends. This was before I was accepted into the 1+4 program.

One of the largely unpraised beauties of 1+4 is the social network that you have when you return to campus. In addition to the four fellows in country with me, I had eight others who shared the experience with me virtually from their respective locations, as well as 13 more from the year before me who would be sophomores when I arrived on campus. While many of my peers scrambled around to find social groups in the first weeks, I knew that I would always have my friends from 1+4 to fall back on if I had any problems. They had all gone through the same crazy experiences that I had and would be more than happy to take time out of their days to spend with me. While many students enter college knowing people on their sports teams or through various mutual friends, I had four intimate friends who had lived and worked with me for nine months, who knew me better than many friends from home did.

This is not to say that I avoided making new friends because I already had a small network at my fingertips. Instead, I felt more confident taking my time finding new friends, thus I was not pressured to latch onto the first group of people that I met. Tufts has so many different kinds of people, and it takes time to find people that you can feel completely comfortable around. Being a 1+4 alumnus allowed me to take the first few weeks as a time of exploration and wait until I found the right group, knowing that I already had a tight group in which to confide when I needed it.

Posted on

Siblings and Host Siblings: Worlds Collide

by Rebeca, Tufts 1+4 Participant

Over the course of the nine months I spent with my host family, we got very close. My host mom, Maria, treated me like a daughter and was always open to talking about anything I was dealing with. My host sister, Irene, and I shared music with each other and went on little excursions every once in a while. We had long conversations, watched an obscene amount of vine compilations, and practiced doing make-up on my face, among other things. She is 15, just like my little brother. Towards the end of my nine months in Madrid, Mikel, another fellow in Madrid, gave me the idea of doing an exchange of sorts with our siblings and host siblings. Maria and Irene loved the idea. For the month of October Irene stayed with my family in my hometown in Alabama (Huntsville). My brother and Irene got along pretty well. Irene got to go school with my brother and visit Orlando with my family (thank goodness because Alabama is not that exciting). I went to visit her on one of the weekends she was with my family. We took her to the lake (classic Alabama activity) and had a great time catching up. The following weekend, my family and Irene came to Boston to see me and we toured the city together. Seeing her again after a few months was wonderful and so much fun. It was like my two worlds, the U.S and Madrid, had finally met. Maria told me after Irene went back to Madrid that Irene benefited so much from the change in environment and meeting new people. She seems to be more outgoing now, which is exactly what happened to me after living in Madrid. Irene and I now share this experience of living with each other’s families, which I think is really special. I know I always have a home in Madrid, and Irene knows she always has a home here in the U.S.

Posted on

A Trip back to Spain

By Evan, Tufts 1+4 Participant

Six months can feel like a long time. Since I last saw my host family, I had made an entirely new group of friends at Tufts, joined the sailing team, and switched my major at least four times. But as soon as I saw my host sister and parents in the airport in Madrid, I knew that despite our time apart, we would have no trouble jumping right back into our relationship. For over a week, I played, laughed, and chatted with my host siblings, parents, and grandfather, sharing stories from our time apart and reminiscing on our year together. I visited the school where I had been placed last year, having only told a handful of people that I would be coming. Just like with my host family, I knew from my short conversations with the teachers and students that I would always have a home both at the school and in Madrid whenever I wanted to visit. When I had to return to the US at the end of my trip, it was hard to leave my family and friends again after having only been there for nine days, but I stand reassured that no matter how long we go until we see each other next, we’ll always be able to reconnect and enjoy each other’s company.

Posted on

Bus rides: Reflection, Spurts of Wisdom, and Slight Nausea

by Erica, Tufts 1+4 Participant
It has been roughly eight months since we left our 1+4 host sites, and I’m currently on a bus from Hartford to Cambridge after a relaxing winter break. During my bridge year, I spent so many hours on buses, that if I didn’t look up every once in a while, I might forget that I’m actually in Connecticut.
Yes, time has passed. But I don’t find myself forgetting. Not the important stuff anyways. There is no way the terrazas and golden streets of Madrid at dusk, the constant buzzing of el Retiro, the shrieks and cackles of my host sisters, or the salty, wholesome taste of tortilla could ever slip from my memory. And if I do happen to do a little forgetting, I always have the “a year ago today” Google Photos notifications to remind me of the gorgeous cities I was galavanting exactly 365 days ago (as I sit in the library).
I’ve done my fair share of missing, but now I find comfort in my future. Madrid was an inexplicably beautiful experience, but college has begun! I can now study and live and laugh with my closest friends (who are also gifts from 1+4). Some people struggle freshman year to find their people, but I’m lucky to have already located mine.
My first semester back to school went rather swimmingly, but it wasn’t perfect. Something that bothered me and served as a source of stress was my low number of clubs and activities. In September, I was focused on my studies and getting back into the swing of academics, and I was afraid to stretch myself too thin my first semester. Therefore, I didn’t join as many clubs as everyone else had.
Over winter break, I decided to address my dissatisfaction. I scoured the 2020 and 2021 Facebook pages to join e-lists and apply for e-board positions in organizations that looked fascinating to me. I liked pages, researched websites, emailed professors and community service organizations, and became very close with Student Information Services. I can’t wait to get back to campus, get involved, and take charge of this semester.
The moral of the story is that everyone goes at their own pace. Stay present, stay golden, and don’t freak out!
Posted on

Back Home

by Mikel, Tufts 1+4 Participant

After a seemingly eternal journey back home, that provided almost too much time to reflect and get emotional about my 9 months in Spain, we arrived in Boston. Passing through security a TSA officer said welcome home Mr. ‘Quintana’, crudely mispronouncing my last name in a very Bostonian accent. It was a subtle yet strong reminder I was back in the US.

When we arrived on campus we were joyously received by the Brazil fellows, signalling the start of the retreat. Being on campus with the other fellows, Jessye, Mindy, and other familiar faces, all interested in talking about our time abroad, created a small bubble that removed us for a few days from our new reality; being back home, being back in the US. It was helpful and at times emotional to reflect on our 9 months with people who went through similar experiences, but was also a perfect time to share fun and crazy stories from our 9 months. We were able to reconnect with fellows from other countries and reinvigorate an important bond that will surely connect us in some way during our time at Tufts and beyond.

Continue reading “Back Home”