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Photo: Akihito Oishi I arrived at Kurtz family's house on August 2, 1998. I still remember that it was the rainy day and what Bob, my American father said to me, "You brought the rain to Elkton!" I Love Elkton, Part 1 Meeting the Kurtz Family Akihito Oishi from Japan Akihito Oishi, a Japanese high school student, spent a year as an exchange student in the home of Robert and Alice Kurtz in Elkton, South Dakota. I was in constant anxiety as a result of being the exchange student from Japan before going to the U.S. I didn't have self-confidence to be an exchange student. I was afraid of everything about Elkton before going there. I arrived at Kurtz family's house on August 2, 1998. I still remember that it was the rainy day and what Bob, my American father said to me, "You brought the rain to Elkton!" He said that rain didn't fall so much before I came to Elkton. I am sure that it was so hard for Kurtz family to host a boy because there are six people in Kurtz family: my host parents and four sisters—Kim, Karen, Mary and Wendy. Photo from the Kurtz family The four Kurtz sisters and a son-in-law: Wendy, Mary, Karen, Kim and her husband Daryl Alice, my American mother, showed me every room in our house. Each room shows their character. Karen and Wendy's room is a mess, while Mary's room keeps clean. I made my room be in a mess. I remember that Mary told me to clean my room quite often.   Part 2: My First Experiences at Elkton School This letter was originally published in the August 19, 1999 issue of the Elkton Record (Elkton, South Dakota) by the editor, Mary Ann Stuefen Return to: Foreign Exchange Students | Experiences Learning English | Home Page TOPICS Online Magazine ©1997-2008 - Sandy and Thomas Peters - topics.mag@gmail.com