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. . . I am not the same Farrin I was when I left America a month ago.  Because of my disability, back home there were times when I felt like a one-woman traveling freak show. My limp took precedence over myself as a whole, and strangers often met my gaze with looks of fear or even disgust. 
How surprised I was when I found this was not the case in China. The people here are quick to help, not quick to judge.  I find that now my smile draws even more attention than the way I walk.

Six months after returning to the United States, Farrin continues to reflect on her experience in China.  She discussed her views with Parent to Parent of Vermont this fall, exploring her preconceptions and looking back on how the experience has changed her. 

 Reflections from Farrin:
"I was really nervous before I left for China.  I had barely been outside the country at that point. 
When I went in for my interview, my disability was directly addressed.  Until then, that had never been a consideration for me.  I have spent so long separating my disability from myself, so that the idea that they came together as a complete package wasn't in my head; it was an issue I never wanted to confront. After the interview, going to China and being disabled became explicitly linked. 
I thought a lot about it.  I assumed I would be viewed negatively.  I am alive because of progress and science that aren't available in China. There's no one like me there.  I anticipated the fear and pity that is usually created in my presence would be magnified tenfold, and I was prepared - but it wasn't even on the radar.
For me, China showed connections in my own life that I didn't see before.  I thought I had myself figured out.  I assumed I knew what everyone's reaction to me would be before people reacted. I developed a "me against the world" mentality.  I became numb and shelled myself in, all as a matter of protection.  When I went to China and they reacted differently, I found that my whole idea, my whole belief needed to be reworked. 
It's good and bad, a double-edged sword.  I'm more sensitive now, and that makes me more vulnerable.  I expect more of myself to be able to articulate what I'm feeling.  It puts more pressure on me.  China has given me my voice - although it shakes - to speak about my disability.  Suddenly I find that my words and stories touch people, they can connect, and that I am not alone.
There are still good days and bad days. My experience has given me the ability to look at everything in a more reflective state, not just charging through it all.  It's also caused me to look back and be appreciative of what I've been through and how that makes me stronger.  I hope that maybe with my new-found openness and sense of self, I can encourage others to speak about their fears and differences and continue to find deeper, more profound connections with myself and others. Before Journey East this would have been unthinkable for me."
After finishing high school, Farrin plans to travel, continue her artistic endeavors and explore activism.  When asked where she would like to travel, Farrin replied, "In my own country, outside my own country, the far east... Outer space isn't that interesting to me but I guess I'll keep it in mind!"                  
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Farrin Sofield is from Newfane and is a senior at Leland & Gray Union High and Middle School. To read Farrin's full account of her time in China, visit the Journey East website at www.wcsu.k12.vt.us/~lguhs/je/