Written by: Sienna Day
Editor’s Note: The following Q&A has been edited for length and clarity.
Last year, Kaeddie De Voyard, a junior English-TESOL major, decided to join the Adventist Colleges Abroad (ACA) program in France. In an interview with the Accent, De Voyard described her experience abroad and how it helped her not only learn the language but also grow spiritually.
Why did you decide to join the ACA program?
My parents are from Haiti, so I’m Haitian. I grew up speaking Haitian Creole, which is very similar to French, so I’ve always wanted to become fluent in French. They never taught me, unfortunately, so I had to kind of handle that desire on my own.
I remember the day I saw that I could go to France. I think I saw a picture or something and it dawned on me — I can go to France and just spend a year there and study abroad. And I did it. It was the best decision for me.
So I got to go become fluent in the language, which was already a desire of mine, and then I also got to fulfill the desire to travel, which is something I think that we don’t recognize we have the privilege of doing.
In what ways did your study abroad experience help you grow?
Firstly, I grew spiritually because I saw God work in mysterious ways. There were three instances where I witnessed Him — I witnessed my prayers come into reality.
During the first trimester, I lost my wallet. There was 50 euros in there, and I was freaking out when my aunt, who never sends me money, randomly sent me $50. I called her at one point; I’m like, “Hey, thank you so much for this money, this is a miracle.” She’s like, “Yeah, God told me to send you money. He spoke to me saying you needed it.”
When I was getting my classes for the second trimester I really wanted to take skiing. I knew it was going to be extra money, but I wanted to do it. Every trimester the school gives you some compensation to help you pay for certain things. They don’t usually do it in advance, but they ended up doing it in advance for me so that I would be able to pay for skiing classes.
Then, at a certain point, I found that wallet again. I did! It was like March or April when I needed 50 euros. I had been searching everywhere for it, and I guess I didn’t look well enough or something.
It was really those moments that kind of kept me going in my spiritual life and really built me up. It really helped me remember who God is.
What did you learn about yourself?
I learned that fear is what stops us from doing the things that we want to do, specifically as adults. When you’re a kid, you’re just enjoying life — life’s a breeze. You don’t even conceptualize death or the worst possible consequence. You don’t think about those things. But when you’re an adult, it consumes you.
Playing volleyball tested me because I was never really a sporty person. It shook me because I had to be faced with my own embarrassment, you know? I had to fall down, get bruised up, the worst possible circumstances. I mean, I got injured twice. I’ve made mistakes in volleyball, and what I’m proud of myself for is how I kept coming back. And I probably wouldn’t have done that if it wasn’t for the people around me, the people in France and the friends I made who came from the United States to France.
“I learned that fear is what stops us from doing things that we want to do, specifically as adults.”
Also, I learned how much I’m capable of. I was able to go out on my own, and I feel like just being able to go out and navigate the European world by myself or with friends was an awesome feat.
What do you think stops students from joining the ACA program?
I think as Americans, we kind of just think [about] America, but you can go and live in a completely different place. There are so many beautiful places and many amazing people to meet and experiences to have. I feel like that was one of the biggest things I learned, too, just the world and all that it has to offer.
What was a prayer you had answered through this program?
One of the biggest prayers I had was to find out what I wanted to do with my life. And I figured it out. I declared a major officially after ACA. I’m telling you, God works. He was working last year. January to February was the most I’ve ever felt like I was so on fire for God and I was praying so much and talking to Him and focusing on Him. I realized that when I did that, everything else fell into place. So that was really cool too. That’s when I realized that I just need to focus on God. Because after I do that, then things just find a way of working out. According to His will, of course.
Do you miss living and studying in France?
There was a point in early August or September where I was crying because I missed it. I mean, thinking about France, it’s so heartwarming. It feels like home. I kid you not, the people feel like family. The people feel like they actually care about you and they love you, and I don’t think that that’s something we should take for granted.