On Friday morning, everyone got up and began
getting ready for school. I went into work for a couple of hours at the church.
I left Aimee at home to rest after a quick tour of the house. I let her know
that I would be back at 11am to get her to pick her up for our
appointment with the guidance counselor. Today she would be registering for school and picking out
classes. Aimee was waiting on me when I got back to the house. She was very
nervous. We got loaded up in the car and we traveled to Alleghany High School.
We parked and Aimee took pictures of the
outside of the school. She was still very nervous and the size of the school
was intimidating to her. I let her know that a big chunk of the school was
the auditorium and the gymnasium and the cafeteria and if you took those things
out, it wouldn't be all that big!
We arrived at the office and I rang the bell
and stated my name and Aimee's name and our purpose for visiting. Then I was
asked who else was with us. I said "No one" because there was nobody
else with us. I turned around and another student was behind us! She announced
her name and the door was opened for us. Once we arrived in the office, I had
to surrender my driver's license. I signed into the school computer and
carefully filled in my detailed information of where I would be going.
This is completely different than what it
would be like for Aimee's mother Katharina in Germany. If she was going into
Aimee's school, she would just walk right in or walk in with Aimee. I'm sure
this is because of the strict gun control in Germany. I'm not about to open
that can of worms, but merely, share the differences. The German system
of gun control is
among the most stringent in Europe. It restricts the acquisition, possession,
and carrying of firearms to
those with a creditable need for a weapon. It bans fully automatic weapons and
severely restricts the acquisition of other types of weapons. Since 2009, there
have been 288 school shootings in America, compared to only one in
Germany.
After I was all signed in, we walked to the
guidance office. Aimee and I were warmly welcomed by Ms. Howell and the staff
in guidance. I can’t say enough good things about Ms. Howell. She really
listened to Aimee and got to know her and didn’t rush in getting her enrolled
and signed up for classes. She was friendly and warm and it was a great
experience!
For those unfamiliar with YFU exchange
student program, this year in an American school will count for zip, zero, zilch, nada in Germany.
She studies and attends classes and receives grades, but it doesn’t count for
anything in Germany. When she returns next fall, she will be a junior in her
German school. Because this year doesn’t count for squat in the opinion of the
school systems, Ms. Howell let Aimee decide what grade level she wanted to do!
Ms. Howell pointed out that many of the exchange students in the past were
enrolled as seniors which offered them a few fun perks such as leaving five
minutes early for lunch and getting to leave five minutes early on Fridays at
the end of the day and getting to participate in the senior picnic and the
graduation (even though she would just have an attendance certificate in hers!)
Well that was a no-brainer for Aimee. You should have seen her eyes light up
when she learned she would be a senior! Aimee signed up for US History,
English, Spanish, PE and Leadership this semester.
After this was complete, I walked Aimee down
to the cafeteria. Everyone was staring at her! I guess it’s not everyday that a
beautiful 16 year old German exchange student walks into the cafeteria at
Alleghany High School! I said to Aimee, “Everybody is staring at you.” She
said, “I know.” And we laughed. I walked over to where my daughter Natalie was
sitting and Natalie introduced her to a few friends. I then walked over to
where Principal Ross was seated and introduced him to Aimee. He gave her a
friendly welcome to America and to AHS!
We then walked back to the office and I had
to enter my code from my nametag into the computer to let them know I was
leaving the building. I was then given back my driver’s license and we exited
the building.
Next I drove Aimee to Clifton Forge and did
a quick tour of the main drag. We laughed about some of the different ways we
say things. I mentioned the “grocery store” and she didn’t understand. I now
call Kroger the supermarket! Ha!
We headed back to Covington and we stopped
at Cucci’s. We had ham & cheese sandwiches and talked about many things.
Aimee began to open up a little more as she got more comfortable with me. After
Cucci’s we went to Walmart to check out cell phones. Aimee had her phone from
Germany and she could use it on wifi, but in order to have something for her to
stay in contact with us and her friends, she would have to have a local phone.
Aimee couldn’t believe how cheap the iPhones were!
We left Walmart and went back to the house
and waited for everyone to return. We had big plans for the evening! We were
going to the Pink in the Park Salem Red Sox game! Amy had never seen a baseball
game…or a baseball match as she first called it! We got to Roanoke and got in.
Papi tried to explain the rules to her, but she didn’t really understand and
she found baseball boring. She did, however, enjoy DIPPING DOTS!
After the ballgame, we headed back home and
got a good night’s sleep. The next day we relaxed and helped Aimee unpack and
get settled and that evening, it was off to the West Virginia State Fair!
That’s right! We initiated her into America with that unforgettable combination
of smells—cow dung, deep fried everything, and cinnamon rolls! Aimee had her
first corndog at the State Fair. She LOVED it. We tried to get a picture but
she ate it too fast! Aimee had a wonderful time at the state fair and she is
fitting in our home and hearts seamlessly.
~lightningbug
