District 2240

         When thinking of an institution that I belong to, many come to mind. I was a Red Raider at Central High School, I am now a Golden Gopher, I am part of a family, and I am part of a church. The list could go on and on. However, when thinking of an institution that I am close to, something that has shaped who I am as a person, I think of District 2240. During my junior year in high school, I joined the worldwide extremely large community known as Rotary International. I, as a sixteen year old decided to go out on a limb and become an exchange student. I left my family, and friends and arrived in Slovakia not knowing anything, or anyone.

         The first weekend there, I met and became part of an institution that I would remember for the rest of my life; District 2240. District 2240 was a community of exchange students from around the world who all had the same desire to travel the world, and experience life unlike any before. We were all in the same position, we didn’t know any of the language, and most of us were a bit dazed and confused as to where we even were. It was these people though, that would become some of my best friends. We met only every other month, but each time we did, we was as if we had never left. We were best friends, like a big family. We had inside jokes; we cared for each other. I believe that we bonded so well because we were all experiencing the same thing. We could cry together, because we understood where those feelings came from, we could laugh at embarrassing experiences together because we had had similar ones, we could sit and enjoy time together because we were happy together. These people signify another family, another group of people who I am comfortable being with, who I cared for. These people were very important in my life, because without them, I don’t know if I could have survived a year from being away from my real family, and my life at home.