Today Lydia Wester lives the life of a typical junior at the UI. She spends her time studying and hanging out with friends. However, Lydia's childhood was anything but typical. The child of two missionaries she grew up in several different parts of Africa

Lydia's Experience (In Her Own Words):

Q: Describe your experience living overseas and how this experience impacted your life.

A: I lived oversees for about 14 years of my life. My family would come back to the US about every three or four years for a year at a time. I grew up in Congo (then called Zaire) till fourth grade. From junior to senior high my family lived in the Central African Republic, but I went to boarding school in the neighboring country of Cameroon. Now I'm back in the U.S. for college.

My family lived oversees because my parents are missionaries with the Evangelical Free Church. My dad is a doctor, working at a hospital, doing public health and AIDS education, helping with finance etc. My mom is officially a French teacher but right now is teaching Bible classes in a Bible school.

It wasn't the easiest growing up--all the movies, good-byes, and even having my home looted, but I wouldn't trade it for the world! I made so many friends and met people from around the world. It's definitely given me an international perspective and a love for the world. Later in life I can definitely see myself living oversees...not just because my parents do, but because I'm realizing that is where my heart is. It's definitely affected my choice of careers--I want to be a doctor now because I've seen the huge need in Africa, especially compared to the US. It's also given me a love for international students here on campus. There are still times I feel like I don't fit in with mono-cultural Americans, though I do have good friends that are. Overall I am very thankful that I've gotten to experience growing up oversees, which most people don't get to.

Q: What was it like adjusting to life back in the U.S. for you?

A: Moving to a new place is always an adjustment. It was hard leaving my friends and having to start all over again making new friends. It was nice to be close to relatives though. I remember coming back to the States in 10th grade and experiencing some culture shock, like being amazed at how much food people threw away, all the focus on clothes (I shopped at goodwill), not knowing the newest songs and movie stars, and just not knowing many people who really understood what it was like to be a MK (missionary kid) or TCK (third culture kid). I think experiencing that in 10th grade helped make my transition into college a lot easier because I knew more about American culture.