茨城キリスト教大学

Broaden Your Horizons!

国際交流部長 Jim D. Batten

My home was in Hollis, Oklahoma, in the mid-western area of the United States. The land around Hollis is rolling hills, so you can't see too far off. The crest of the next hill is your "horizon", "which means the point where the earth and the sky seem to meet. However, if you travel about 30 kilometers to the west you are in the high planes of Texas. It is so flat there that you can see all the way to the "vanishing point" as your horizon! I was a college student before I traveled more than 300 kilometers away from home, and never had the chance to fly until after I graduated from college. From the airplane your horizons are even farther away!

I think mental horizons are the same. when I was in high shool, my horizons were my friends and family. I had no experience of other languages or customs. When I went off to college my horizons broadened. I was only 200 kilometers from home, but met people from all over the USA and a few other countries, I learned there are many ways of thinking and interacting. After graduation, when I was 24, I came to Japan. My horizons expanded again. I have come to love and appreciate Japanese language and culture.

You have a chance to expand your horizons at a much younger age than I did. You can travel abroad as a part of your college education. You can learn about other cultures and languages and receive college credit for those experiences! I encourage you to take advantage of your opportunities!

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