| I sat there in anxiety with shivering hands
and legs whilst Roy called off names and the various countries. I didn't know what to
expect, I just prayed in my heart, wanting so badly to spend the next year in
complete happiness, away from what I had known as home all of my life...and
then, before I knew it, Brazil was no longer a name, but a mystery that only you can
interpret.
Today, I share in the life of a star. I've walked the red carpet many a day. I've dazzled through the streets of Brazil as the new lady in town. I've graced the scene with a different perspective of the world today, but just as the singer woos the crowds he too has her days of struggle. Mom and dad told me to go out there and make the most of it. Friends said, "Oh she'll never be the same again. "Some say, it is a once in a life time opportunity, others say that it will change you for the better, but I say, NO! I, Krissy Hanna, a true Bahamian at heart, will tell you that it is not what your year as an exchange student can do for you, but what you can do to make the most of your year. You have to be the one to greet people and make new friends. You have to be the one to educate others about who you are and where you're from. You must be the one to add life to the family that awaits you, you must be the one to change community life. You, my dear friend, must be willing to do this and more! There will be days when you long to be home again, wanting to dial home just to hear mother's voice. Days when you're feeling miserable and bored. Times when you can't take another moment living with the family that you are with and moments when you feel alone as if nothing is worth the try, but I say to you...GET OUT OF IT AND TAKE HOLD OF YOUR STRENGTH!!! I told them all that I would capture
every moment and place them in my book of memories. As I turn the pages ,I see me standing there in the
beauty of Brazil. Dancing in Bahia, where Michael Jackson appeared, singing songs of praises at the site
of Christ the Redeemer statue, relaxing along the beaches,
challenging friends with a game of capoeira and then sharing with my family the love of my nation. For the young American and Bahamian with
ears to heed to my words, stand up and repeat these words. |