Should you host a foreign exchange student?

Thank for sharing this. I wish I could say I had a great experience with hosting a student. But, I did everything wrong to cause my experience to fail. Right now I am
Feeling empty and abandoned. I have such a long story that I could tell. But essentially, my student was just not happy being here in my home. He was also from Brazil (Brasil ?), and had asked the same question about squirrels. When he asked is that a squirrel. I kinda was surprised and was something I learned he just never saw in his country. My experience went pretty much like this. I had picked my student around May and developed a relationship with him over social media, myself with him and his family. I tried to keep that relationship separate when making contact with both of them before he arrived. In hopes that that would just be the best thing. So the time finally arrived on August 9. I remember that day as being so joyous and was looking forward to the next 10 months of this person coming into my home and being the son that I never had. He was very popular at his school he liked to play sports American football was one thing he wanted to be a part of. So before he got here was around the same time they had registration at his high school. So my daughter and I both met with the counselor before he even arrived and we had everything ready for him to just start going to school. But then just four days ago today is October the 14th 2018. My agency walked into my house sat down while I was on the phone with the agency support person and was told that he would be removed from the home and that he had five minutes to pack his bags and leave. I was speechless and could not understand why this person that I had thought would be my son for all the time to come could just walk out on me that way. I felt like my son was being taken by DSS for reasons that I couldn’t understand. I was told I had too hi of emotions and expectations. The feeling that I have this very moment Is so empty and lost. I know should have done the things that you laid out here in this video. And thT everything that you have laid out is exactly what I didn’t do that call caused my time with my Stident to in much sooner than I had expected. He began to go to his room as soon as he came in from school and stay there until he went to bed. He would cook in the kitchen and leave his dishes on the stove and I would always pick up after him. So I sent him an email instead of talking to him like I should have and I believe that had to have started our demise. I will say this everything that you talked about in your video is so true. . Had I done everything that you said You did we may be in a different place at this point. My agency pretty much stepped in because of how much his parents and him had talked about how miserable he was here. And of course that was not my intention . I thought I had done everything the right way. But unexpectedly I have to deal with the sorrow of my journey that I thought I would be taking being cut short. And it hurts so bad. Knowing that my suppose son that I had developed a good relationship with is just a mile down the street with his liaison is the worst feeling. I can’t reach out to him and say I am so sorry. I have done that but it’s gotten to a point where it’s just too late and there’s nothing I can say or do to get him back. Even though ultimately it is his choice. I think that his parents had much to do with the reason why he left. They could only hear him from Brazil and his side of what was going on. I tried everything from playing tennis going to the gym watching football games with him taking him to football games. Go gamecocks. And and none of it was enough. So I guess my comment Is this. if there’s anything that I can say to anyone considering hosting a student. Is to listen to your video because it all is so true. He and I were more like roommates then I was a father to him. And I think he wanted to have that mother father type situation to come to. But I couldn’t give him that. I’m divorced and I have no desire right now to even get into a relationship. But I think about the fact that he knew what he was signing up for and excepted this to be a single parent home. And then he finds out two months into his ten-month stay here that is not what he wanted. He felt like we just did not have a connection. And I have that unconditional kind of love for anything that I do in life and for him just as I do my daughter. And to realize that he doesn’t have that same connection with me is just unbearable. Thank you so much for your video I’m sorry for the run-on‘s and typos but I’m talking using my voice text putting this into words so I hope it doesn’t get boggled all together and not make any sense. I just wanted to share a little bit of my experience although there’s a lot more to the story. I just want to be clear that even though I thought I was doing everything right. My time with my son was unexpectedly cut short and it’s such an empty feeling. Such a long story that I know I sound like I’m rounding rambling. I do apologize for that. Thank you again Charleston South Carolina