By Shelley Bauer

On July 15, 26 students and two chaperones arrived in Cedar Springs from the city of Chongqing, China, for a two-week visit.

Chongqing is situated in the eastern part of southwest China. Its population is about 12 million people, so they were amazed at the size of our small town!

The two weeks consisted of English school in the morning, with activities in the afternoon. The students all stayed with host families that were from Cedar Springs and the surrounding area. Many students from China go to school from 7:30 a.m. until 9:30 p.m., and only see their parents on the weekends, so they really enjoyed the interaction they had with their host families.

Many students have never shared the experience of having siblings because China has a “one child” policy. They all enjoyed having brothers and sisters.

They also commented on the friendliness of the people in our town and were surprised to see so many smiling faces. Many people stopped them and asked them where they were from.

The evening before they left to go home was celebrated with a large American picnic including lots of games. The students loved the food. There weren’t many leftovers, that’s for sure!

Families and students shared with the group the fun they had together in their short time they had in Cedar Springs. Many of us hated to see them go, knowing that we probably would never see them again. We’re reminded of the quote that says, “You meet people who forget you. You forget people you meet. But sometimes you meet those people you can’t forget. Those are your friends.” Our lives have become richer because of our new friends from across the world! If you and your family would be interested in hosting a student from around the world, please email me at sbauer5kids@yahoo.com.