I had the honor of meeting one of Premier’s newest family members this week. His name is Frank, and he is 14 years old. He attends Hill Country Christian School in Austin and is in the 8th grade.
I wanted to see what it’s like for a 14-year-old Chinese student to come to the United States for the first time because I am in awe of these kid’s bravery and their ability to adjust.
Frank is from southeast China near Shanghai. He is an only child, and he describes his family in China as being sweet and nice. Although, Frank said he never thought of them that way when he lived in China. He said he was a normal kid who believed his parents talked a lot and had a lot of rules. But, now that he’s living in Texas, he realizes that his parents are actually very sweet and nice.
I introduced him to the American sentiment, “absence makes the heart grow fonder,” and he agreed that’s what he thinks he’s experiencing.
I asked Frank for his top ten list of the first things he’s experiencing in the United States, and he had fun recounting his firsts to me.
Frank’s Firsts
- Home- He said his host family’s home is huge. He lives in a flat (apartment) on the 22 nd floor in China. His host family home has a big yard with animals frogs, turtles, deer, and rabbits.
- Parties- Frank is experiencing going to people’s homes for parties for the first time.
- Foods- Frank is confident that he is eating three or four times more food than in China. He’s enjoying hamburgers, hot dogs, and tacos. (Which he says are Yummy)!
- New Family – Frank feels lucky to have such a good host family. He has a new little brother, Ty. Ty is Frank’s age, and his host mom and dad are Stancey and Jeff.
- School- School is a lot less work for Frank. He says he is good at math; in fact, he’s taking 11th-grade math. He’s happy for the lighter workload and more relaxed classes in Texas.
- Teachers – Frank feels that the teachers are amiable, and he loves them. He says, “They take care of me.”
- Church- Frank is surprised that his church is also his school. He is not a Christian, and this is the first time he has gone to church. He thought it was going to be a little different in his mind. He thought it was just a guy reading the Bible, but instead, he discovered that there is singing and people are talking to people. It’s a lot better than he thought.
- Friends – Frank goes to a lot of parties with his brother. They swim, play football, watch tv, and play hide and seek.
- Sports- Frank is an outstanding athlete. He’s a national champion second class athlete in the sport of fencing. He said the style of American fencing is very different than what he’s used to, and he’s sure he will learn quickly.
- Living away from home- This is Frank’s first time living away from home and experiencing so many new things. Can we all pray for him and all our other new students who entered the United States through Premier Education? These kids are brave.
