Taking the Steps

It all starts with an excited feeling. Maybe it begins through a friend, a colleague, a sibling. You hear about the option of becoming a host family with YFU. You ask questions, you get some answers. Maybe it's not sufficient, but you're still curious. Everyone who tells you it's a great experience, can't quite put their finger on what was so specifically amazing . But they're smiling about it all. Now, you're not just curious, you're ready to fill out paperwork. So, you sign up, hand in the paperwork, get interviewed by a volunteer, look through student profiles.

And then it hits you.

I could never do this, you think. I could never be so brave, as to plant myself in another world for an entire year. And at 15 years old, 16 years old, 17 years old. These are real students, with their own families back home. But they want to know me. They want to know all about me. Man, that's special.

Being a host family with YFU isn't about being the perfect family. It isn't about traveling all over the country and showing off American sights. It isn't about eating the most delicious meals you've ever tasted. It definitely isn't about superficial learning.

Being a host family with YFU is about trust and honesty. Your family is opening its doors and trusting that this student who walks through those doors will respect your home and your family. It's about learning that this student who eventually becomes a member of your family, is putting immense trust in you and your family. And if both parties are honest to each other and to themselves, well then... that's when the magic happens.

That's when you understand that being a host family with YFU is about love.