August 29, 2019 is the day I left from Venice to start my one year experience in the United States. The first 3 days, I spent in New York with a group of other Italian kids (all exchange students like me), allowed me to get into the perspective that I was leaving my home, where I had spent my whole life up to that moment, to live the next 10 months in the Midwest of the US. More specifically, I was placed in the city of Coon Rapids in Minnesota with the Schmit family. Their family is composed by: the father Dave Schmit, originates from Illinois, the mother Åsa Dahlberg Schmit, born and raised in Sweden, and their children Alex and Emma Schmit, both born in Sweden and raised in Coon Rapids; the family also owns an 8-year-old dog, Elliot, who is very energetic and affectionate.

When it comes to adventures of this type, two fundamental things are the basis of an experience lived to the fullest: the host family and the school. When I have to talk about my Host-Family I have a lot of difficulty in finding negative sides, I was immediately able to create a strong bond with my host father and brother: we had many interests in common and similar way of thinking and seeing the world, several times I have had discussions about politics and contemporary society with Alex who despite being only 20 years old manages to see the world from a very objective point of view and has enormous willpower when it comes to the change towards a more tolerant and open society, and this influenced me a lot. Unfortunately, however, if on the one hand I was able to bond a lot with my Host-brother, on the other hand I could not find a meeting point with my Host-sister with whom, despite the fact that I have lived with her for the whole duration of this trip, I did not build a very strong bond. Clearly this situation was influenced a lot by the fact that I never had a sister and that i lived my whole life with my older brother, so I was already familiar with the bond between two male brothers. Despite this small problem that arose with my host sister, all the relationships I created with the rest of the family remained solid and strong, especially the bond I created with my host-mum, Åsa. Back in Sweden, she was a professional diver and now in the United States she trains the Coon Rapids High School Diving Team. With her the connection I created was born purely because we both liked listening to each other and we both liked talking about particular situation if we had any, so we usually ended up talking together if we needed to, of course not about particular aspects of our life but at least, If I needed someone to talk to, about stuff I didn’t know how to do, she was there and I was there if she needed help to let some steam out due to her job, which got even more stressful during the pandemic, since she works in the Minnesota State Healthcare Department. Overall life with the Schmits was very quiet, regarding housework for example, everyone was responsible for their own things, keeping their room tidy, doing laundry and so on. Let's say that during the year I developed this sense of independence that I had never had in Italy and it was difficult to adapt to how things work when I got home, because in America I was used to doing what I had to do on my own .

However, the relationships I have created with my Host-family are very strong, indeed even now I keep in touch with them via email. I am very happy to have been chosen by the Schmits as their exchange student.

As I talked about my Host-family I think I can also talk very well about my school, Coon Rapids High School, home of the Cardinals. The symbolic colors of this school are red, white and black and this color combination can be found in the equipment of the school sports teams, on the school's prize boards and even on the stands of the sports fields. The CRHS has a huge pride (the so-called Cardinal Pride) that drives every team in the school to aspire to win. The school year is divided into three different trimesters, each corresponding to a different season, in order there are the autumn, winter and spring seasons. Each season includes a precise list of sports among which you can choose one (per season): for example, in my case, there was the swimming team during the winter.

Being part of the swimming team has enlightened me from many points of view, not only I’ve met a lot of guys, more or less my age, with whom I share very funny moments in the pool and with whom I have created wonderful friendships, but I also opened my mind regarding competitive swimming: for a long time in Italy I refused to participate in swimming competitions because I was afraid of losing, but now, after having tried competitive swimming for even just 3 months, I cannot go without it. In addition to school sports, the school also offers the possibility of joining one or more clubs and they can vary in type from the math club to the video game club, from the anime club to the music club or even DECA (the one I joined during the winter season): on the official website what they identify as their ”Mission Statement” is “DECA prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, hospitality and management in high schools and colleges around the globe. " 

In fact, DECA presents itself as a club dedicated to the preparation of its students for an entrepreneurial career with projects that can be completely organized and completed by students within the school and with annual events that act as competitions between the DECA chapters of different schools: for example, during the winter season, I and other guys from the club participated in the “DECA district competition event” and all those who qualified (including myself) were then able to participate in the state competition. In general, the American school has struck me a lot both positively and negatively, unfortunately it lacks in terms of subjects: for example the method used by the professors to explain seems quite confusing and many times it is up to the student to do most of the work without, much often, not even knowing what to do. Although there are these gaps in the educational aspect, the American school excels when it comes to sports, extracurricular activities and in the social aspect: the opportunities for a student to stand out within the school are innumerable and every achievement is recognized by the institution. These are the aspects that considerably distinguish the Italian school from the American one, as it could be said that they are the opposite of each other

Overall, the past year in America, despite not having been able to live it all at 100% (due to Covid), was worth it. This opportunity has opened my mind on many aspects of the world that I probably ignored before and made me a lot more sensitive about certain topics. What I am sure I have learned is to be ready for anything, to be willing to accept what is new and different and it has made me much more curious to discover aspects of the world that I do not yet know. Since I returned, it is as if I were already ready to leave to go anywhere in the world, to get to know new cultures, people, customs, foods. Thanks to this year in the United States I have realized how important it is to open your mind and see the world from different perspectives and not from your own single point of view.