Throughout my twenty-five days on my Global Summers Academy program in the beautiful country of Greece, I learned many life skills that I think have better prepared me for the next chapter of my life as an adult. Before leaving on my GSA summer program, I knew how to do basic life skills like laundry and cooking, but I arrived home with a handful of skills that I never knew I needed.
To start off, I learned how to navigate a foreign country by myself. Although we had teachers and program managers who were there to guide and support us, we still had moments when we were in small groups, on our own. This was one of the first bonding moments for all the students on my program. We all worked together to gather our surroundings, understand the maps and signs in different languages and get our bearings on the beautiful islands we were exploring.
Another life skill that I learned was how to communicate, even with a language barrier. Towards the end of my program, I had to go to a pharmacy to get a medication that I had forgotten to bring. A few of my friends accompanied me to the local pharmacy where we had to use a combination of Google Translate, pictures and hand signals to communicate with the pharmacist to get the medication I needed. Not only had I never been to a pharmacy by myself before, but I also had to work through the language barrier. I feel that this was a very good interaction for me to have for future situations where I may be in a similar situation. I was glad that I had friends and teachers to rely on for support if needed.
The next life skill I learned while in Greece was my mindfulness and management of money. Due to the conversion from Canadian dollars to Euros, I had to be very intentional with the amount of money I was spending and what I was spending it on. This is a very important skill as I start to manage my own money, especially in university.
The final life skill that I learned on my GSA program that I want to acknowledge is the overall growth I experienced as a human. Up until this past summer I had never been away from home or my parents for more than a week. Even though I was able to text and call my parents whenever I wanted, the distance from them was an adjustment. I now feel more prepared to move away for university and less scared to be on my own. I think GSA taught me so many valuable lessons while being the experience of a lifetime.
Thank you to Student Ambassador Brooke A. for writing this blog!
