APPLY
  • Program
  • Admissions
  • Speakers
  • Alumni
  • About Us
APPLY
  • Why Join
  • Experience
  • Apprenticeships
  • South Africa
  • FAQs
  • Admissions
  • Tuition & Aid
  • Eligibility Quiz
  • Request Info
  • Alumni Stories
  • Community Hub
  • Fellowship
  • Academy
  • Our Story
  • Our Impact
  • Our Team
  • News & Press
  • For Educators
  • Donate

Be Patient

When I got back to Austin, Texas after living with an enormous host family (16 people!) in The Dominican Republic for 8 weeks, I realized I needed to make some changes in my life. “Don’t rush, don’t rush,” my host sister would whisper in my ear, “Be patient… It will happen when it happens.”

These words haunted me throughout my stay in The Dominican Republic and soon after I returned home. I found myself in the next years tangled in bouts of impatience from little things such as sitting in bumper to bumper traffic or waiting for a friend to meet me at a restaurant. The words “be patient” would ring in the back of my head and help me begin to understand the ebb and flow of life. Without stopping to enjoy what is right in front of me I would have never discovered my passion for languages, people and the environment. By stepping back and letting things happen on their own terms I decided that instead of heading to college right after I graduated I needed to take a little more time to stop and experience what the world has to offer.

I then made a decision to get out into the world and experience something that four walls of a classroom could never grant me. By choosing to live cross culturally for 8 months I and saying to myself—don’t rush. The new family I will have in Brazil and all the time I will have spent making mistakes and learning and sharing is invaluable. By taking some time to explore my passions and discover exactly what I would like to pursue in college I believe that I am embodying my host sister’s requests. Don’t rush through life, she would say. And I would reply with a deep breath, a smile and a ready to learn attitude.

Avery Ashwill

About Avery Ashwill


Hailing from Austin, Texas, Avery loves riding her bike and seeing live music. After spending time in The Dominican Republic and Peru, she became passionate about environmental sustainability. At home, Avery is the co-captain of the rowing team and spends as much time as possible near the water. She is looking forward to immersing herself in a new culture and meeting new people in the coming year.

gcy logo
Take Action Lab
  • Why Join
  • Experience
  • Apprenticeships
  • South Africa
  • Take Action Lab FAQs
Academy
  • Why Join
  • Experience
  • Speakers
  • Academy Stories
  • Academy FAQs
Fellowship
  • Why Join
  • Experience
  • Destinations
  • Fellowship Stories
  • Fellowship FAQs
Admissions
  • Admissions
  • Tuition & Aid
  • Gap Year Resources
About Us
  • Our Story
  • Our Impact
  • Our Team
  • News & Press
  • For Educators
  • Community Hub
  • Instructor Hub
  • Careers

1625 Clay Street, Suite 400, Oakland, CA 94612
info@globalcitizenyear.org
415-963-9293

Have Admissions Questions?
Check out our FAQs or email our team at admissions@globalcitizenyear.org

Press Inquiries: Please contact Molly Weissman:
media@globalcitizenyear.org

Privacy Policy

© 2023 - Global Citizen Year