Name: Courtney Linder
Program: Pitt in London program
How did you get to study abroad?
Loans, loans, loans, and more loans. But deciding to study abroad is not a merely financial decision. It’s also a personal undertaking that can take a great deal of courage, especially if you go it alone. How did I get to study abroad? I had parents that supported me until I wanted to throw up. They believed in me and my dreams so much that there’s no way they wouldn’t let me leave. They knew I wanted to be a writer — that London was the perfect epicenter for the written word — and pushed me out the door nearly as hard as they cried.
What do you wish you knew before you left?
I wish I knew to lie about being homesick. You can’t admit to your parents that studying and interning abroad was what made you finally realize your place in the world, without them. You’ve gotta sugarcoat that story. Tell your mom you miss her meatloaf, even if it makes you want to gag. Tell your dad you miss hearing him talk about fishing techniques, even if you care about as much about fishing as you do about the theory of relativity. Lie until you’re blue in the face, because even though your parents will be proud of you, they’ll be sad to know that your life is no longer just in relation to them. You’ve already left the nest long before they realize it. Let them live the fantasy just a moment longer. Oh, and write this all in a postcard so they can weep about it to their friends. Parents love that.
What is the best/funniest/most interesting story you have from abroad?
I got hit by a bike in the middle of the road. It taught me two things and I don’t know which is more important. One, it taught me that I need to wear my glasses. Two, it taught me that you need to be able to laugh at yourself and suck it up. Because even when you feel the tires of a bike tread over your back and hear angry Britons yelling at you to apologize to the biker who ran you over — though he should apologize to you — you can always get back up. That’s a general life lesson, you know? When you get ran over by a bike in a foreign country, you get up and move. So why not do that in all facets of life? Figuratively, of course (seriously, look both ways twice).
Photo: Courtney Linder