If there are days where you sit and wonder about what it’s like back in Oxford, Ohio, let me tell you firsthand: it’s the same. The bricks on Miami’s campus are still red as ever, you can’t find a seat at King Café on a Sunday afternoon, and the second that the temperature rises to anything above 50 degrees there is a sea of salmon shorts and Sperrys flooding Academic Quad.
Now, I’m not claiming that every Miami stereotype is true, or that people simply fall into the same categories when they step back into the Oxford city limits, but I will say that it is a lot easier to blend in if you choose to do so. I’m sure you’ve come to notice that’s not really the case in Europe. Whether it’s asking for directions in a language that you only know how to ask for directions in, being the only one in an entire city wearing a t-shirt in public, smiling at strangers and having them look at you like you’re insane, or taking a picture of your food at every single restaurant, you are not-so-subtly sticking out like a sore thumb.
Now, I’m not claiming that every Miami stereotype is true, or that people simply fall into the same categories when they step back into the Oxford city limits, but I will say that it is a lot easier to blend in if you choose to do so. I’m sure you’ve come to notice that’s not really the case in Europe. Whether it’s asking for directions in a language that you only know how to ask for directions in, being the only one in an entire city wearing a t-shirt in public, smiling at strangers and having them look at you like you’re insane, or taking a picture of your food at every single restaurant, you are not-so-subtly sticking out like a sore thumb.
While every fiber of your being may hate that fact as you get teased by a waiter for your bad French accent or mistakenly step onto a bus when the driver is taking their break just to get scolded in German (yes, that one is a personal example), I hope that you revel in your difference. For what may be the first time in your life you are no longer the majority, and while that fact can be scary and overwhelming, it is also one of the most challenging and rewarding feelings you will ever be able to experience.
I hope that you laugh at every mispronunciation, messed up bus schedule and cultural norm that you’ve tripped over because this is your time to be the odd one out. This is your time to make it up as you go, to sing “The Hills are Alive” as you hike (in my case, fall) down a mountain in Switzerland, to be stared at when you ask for ice in your water, to awkwardly kiss someone on the cheek two times instead of three when you greet them because the count is different depending on what country you’re in, or even to have someone actually hand you BACK your money because you left too big of a tip!
This is your chance to make every mistake because the fact is you are not a European - and no matter how hard you try there is no way that you’ll be able to convince anyone otherwise. Instead you’re different, and I hope you take advantage of that as much you can because I promise when you go back to fitting in you’ll miss everything that forced you to stand out.
Ms. Nichole Kanios
Fall ‘17 Ruth & Leeland Dutton Award Recipient
I hope that you laugh at every mispronunciation, messed up bus schedule and cultural norm that you’ve tripped over because this is your time to be the odd one out. This is your time to make it up as you go, to sing “The Hills are Alive” as you hike (in my case, fall) down a mountain in Switzerland, to be stared at when you ask for ice in your water, to awkwardly kiss someone on the cheek two times instead of three when you greet them because the count is different depending on what country you’re in, or even to have someone actually hand you BACK your money because you left too big of a tip!
This is your chance to make every mistake because the fact is you are not a European - and no matter how hard you try there is no way that you’ll be able to convince anyone otherwise. Instead you’re different, and I hope you take advantage of that as much you can because I promise when you go back to fitting in you’ll miss everything that forced you to stand out.
Ms. Nichole Kanios
Fall ‘17 Ruth & Leeland Dutton Award Recipient